Safekeeping
by Project Zombie Shitstorm
Summary: OC story with a bunch of crossovers. Read if you really want to but it's just here for safekeeping.
1. Start

The first thing he noticed when he woke up, was that it was bright. The air was crisp and fresh, so not near any major cities. One green eye opened cautiously. Trees, the forest. Alright, that was good. Good start. The man sat up, shaking out curly locks of brown and looking around. He sat in what looked like the remnants of an old shrine, dilapidated after hundreds of years on neglect. The walls had mostly crumbled and the roof was nonexistent. Large, white wings hung off his back, mussed and unused. There were old scars on his wrists like burn marks, but it all left him confused. He crossed his legs and looked up, frowning.

"Alright, bro, you can just back off now."  
"I'm not going anywhere!"  
"Oh, come on! What'd I ever do to you?"  
"You broke into my house /three times this week/, you green haired idiot!"  
"First of all; it's blue-green. Not green. Second of all; I needed money! What'd you expect me to do?"  
"Oh, I don't know, get a job?"  
The aqua haired man rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen."  
"Not after I kill you, it won't." The orange haired older man growled. The younger of the two laughed before he realized he was serious, the older man's incredibly long tongue lashing out at him. He dodged it, but the blow of the older man's fist against his jaw sent him flying across half of the forest, landing somewhere in the dead center. He hit stone sticking out of the ground, groaning a bit. "Shit."  
"Shit's right!" The orange haired man suddenly showed up in front of him. "You're in for it now, Grimm."  
"Uh-huh. Yeah, do you really want me to do this?" 'Grimm' pulled a small book out of the back pocket of his black skinny jeans.  
"What're you gonna do with that?" the orange haired man scoffed. "Read me to death?"  
"Nah, I'm not that nice, Shu. Sorry." He opened up the book, yelled out "Enter!" and held it out in front of him toward Shu. In a bright flash of light, the other man was suddenly gone. Grimm smiled and looked down at the book, seeing Shu's face on the page. It faded away.

The green-eyed man stood stiffly, looking down at the thin silken material of his long sleeved shirt and pants. Both a rich green, but had faded with time. The gold stitching design across the collar, wrist cuffs and bottom of the pants had faded a bit too. He thumbed it sadly, but looked up as a flash of light beamed out a few yards from where he sat. Magic, all the way out here? Curiously, he made his way towards it, the white faintly glowing crystal that hung off his neck tucked under his shirt. He ducked behind a trees, peaking out at the clearing where a lone man stood with a book in his hands. Traveler?, he wondered, keeping pressed close to his hiding place.

Grimm once again grinned, taking a deep breath and looking around him. "Well, that takes care of that!" he clapped his hands together after putting the book back in his pocket. The chains hanging from the belt loops of his pants jingled, and he adjusted his black fingerless arm gloves so they were straight again. His sleek aqua hair wasn't a bit out of place.  
Striding to his right, he stopped. He didn't even turn, he just raised an eyebrow. "Alright, who's there?" he sighed.

The man froze, torn between backing off and calling out a greeting. He didn't look quite... friendly... and what he was wearing was something he had never seen before. Assassin? Marauder? Perhaps he was working with the ones responsible for destroying the chapels all over the realm? Who slaughtered Dibella herself in her own shrine? The man ducked away into the underbrush, fighting indecision. The others... they were probably dead too. Locked up in Anga just like he almost was, doomed to live out the rest of their days in darkness. He covered his mouth, shaking his head. No, they had to be out there.. had to... oh, he was speaking out loud again. He whirled around to face the man with the aqua hair and book tucked snugly into his pocket. His eyes went wide like a cornered rabbit. He yelped, flapping his wings and feathers shook to the ground. For the love of Akatosh, they were filthy. "What is it you want from me?" One half covered him in a defensive form.

Grimm cocked his head, smirking slightly. The man with wings looked interesting enough. "I don't want anything from you." He shrugged, fiddling with the fake chains hanging from his belt loops. "I am zero threat to you unless you plan on doing something to /me/. Then we'd have a problem."

The man blinked. "Alright. Well, I do not." He got to his feet slowly, watching the stranger warily. "However, may I ask what you are doing so close to my shrine, then?" His wings drooped again, scraping the ground, seeing as the man didn't carry any weapon that he could see. "Have you come to defile it?" His voice wasn't threatening, merely curious.

Grimm looked around him, as if realizing the stones were there for the first time. "Huh. No, not that I know of. This guy was just trying to 'end me' so he punched me and I landed here. That's it. Nice shrine ya got, though." He grinned, nodding.

The man looked at it sadly. "There's nothing left." He ran his finger over one of the stones with markings carved into it. "I believe it has been many years since I last laid eyes upon it. At least it was reclaimed by Nature and not burned to the ground like the others." He looked up. "I don't believe I caught your name. I am Kynareth Fanacasecul, apprentice Lady Kyne. Guardian of the forest... in training. I don't suppose you have seen her?"

"Can't say I have, Kynareth." Grimm shook his head. "I'm Grimm. Last name stay out of this conversation, though." He grimaced. "Guardian of the forest, huh?" he nodded. "Very nice. How come you're all banged up?" He gestured to the other man.

Kynareth shot him an alarmed look. "The Cult of Hearthfire. They went after the Guardians and their shrines and chapels. Surely you've seen the uprising?" His bright green eyes were wide with fear. "They dragged Lady Kyne away before they sealed me up in the chapel, and that was..." he looked over to the ruins of stone littering the ground. "many years ago, I'm guessing. I return now, but I wonder how many years have passed."

"I probably have." Grimm shrugged. "But I probably moved on from wherever I saw it just so I wouldn't get involved. Sorry about your Lady Kyne or whatever..." he cracked his back. "So, where are you headed?"

He blinked. "Um... nowhere, to my knowledge. It seems like I am no longer needed. The teachings of Akatosh have gone, my teacher dead, and my being here has become... pointless." Kynareth sighed, scuffing the dirt with bare feet.

"Huh," Grimm huffed again. "That's... a bit of a downer." He looked at him. "I'd ask if you'd like to join me, but I'm not entirely sure you'd like to be a Wanderer."

Kynareth looked over at him, smiling a little. "It is not as though I have much of a choice. Perhaps you can catch me up on the time I've missed?" He suggested, looking hopeful. "It would be an honor to accompany you, Grimm."

He grinned. "Alright, cool. But it's your choice. You're stuck with me now and I'm looking out for you. I expect the same treatment from you." He gave a firm nod. "I don't really know what's been going on, to be honest. Same real world crap that the humans live in. People getting murdered, hit by cars, rape, that kind of stuff. I don't pay attention to a lot of the magical realm stuff because I'm not really a human or a magical being. I'm sort of in between."

The young Guardian tilted his head. "People used to be very peaceful. There was still murder and such, though I'm not quite sure what a 'car' is, but I think that happened too. It has become more frequent since the passing of the Guardians, then." His wings sagged on his back and he shook them out, more filthy feathers falling to the ground. "It is sad to see the down spiral of humanity. But you seem quite nice, for someone who dresses as strange as you." He chuckled lightly.

"Oh, what, this?" Grimm chuckled, tugging at his Marilyn Manson T-shirt, "It's just my style. I'm a bit of an ignorant jackass, but all in all I guess I'm a nice guy." He smiled. He looked down at himself, understanding why he would come off as a... not so nice guy. From his tall black boots to his black skinny jeans and Marilyn Manson T-shirt and slight eyeliner and aqua hair, it made sense.

Kynareth shrugged. "You have soul and a good heart, that is all that matters to me." He glanced at the man's shirt with confusion and shook his head. "Where are you traveling?"

"Anywhere, really." He shrugged. "I get by on what I can. That guy back there, Shu, he was trying to kill me because I'd broken into his house three times this week for money. I'm broke and no one will hire me."

"You can be put to death for such crimes!" Kynareth seemed shocked. "Usually those who cannot make a living become beggers or become adventurers to pillage caves and ruins for lost treasures. I suspect it is different now." He ran a hand through his hair, feeling confused. "This is all... so..." An exasperated noise escaped his lips.

"Well, if being put to death was what almost happened back there, then yeah. I guess you can." He smirked. When he saw the confused look on the other man's face, he furrowed his brow. "Damn. How long were you conked out for? A few centuries?" he chuckled.

He bit his lip, looking around but not really drawing any information from the forest. "I'm not sure. What year is it now?

"2012," Grimm stated, albeit a bit nervously. What if this guy really had been out for a few hundred years? That'd be a lot of explaining to do...

His mouth opened a little, blinking rapidly. "Well, that would be..." He counted down to the last date he could remember, "Around 700 years. Heh, imagine that..." He laughed a little but it fell flat, coming out shaken and uneasy.

"700 years." Grimm deadpanned. "700 fucking years? Holy /shit/, dude. That's sort of insane. How is that even... Not gonna question it. You alright?"

Kynareth nodded. "I think so. It was the seal." he pointed to his chest. "It kept my mind and powers locked away while my body was protected by Nature. I am not immortal by any means, however. Just.. really out of touch with the world."

"Well it would be cool if you were immortal." Grimm smirked. "And are your wings supposed to be like that?" He pointed to the feathers with raised eyebrows.

He looked at the matted, clumped up feathers which were supposed to be bright white, but were immensely dulled. "No, it is usually a sign of illness or neglect. I do not feel sick, though." He frowned.

"So... neglect?" Grimm guessed. "I mean, you've been unconscious for 700 years, it would only make sense."

"It must be." He ran his fingers through the mess, brushing off dirt and plant life with a sad look. "How they simply haven't moulted off, I do not know. But it is good the Divines have not stripped them from me for failing my duty, as is custom." Kynareth glanced back over at Grimm. "You are unharmed from your conflict?"

"Indeed I am," Grimm nodded again. "At least, I hope I am." He checked his hands; no burn marks on them. "Oh, yeah. I'm good." He pulled the book from his back pocket and showed it to the other man. "This thing took care of Shu back there. He's now lost in the bindings and ink of a book somewhere in the world, and he can't ever get out. Good thing, too. He was a pain in the ass for everyone. Main cause of the death of humans, actually. So I just probably saved a lot of people's asses." He slapped the book on his hand.

Kynareth's eyes lit up, roaming over the cover. "What an unusual talent! Where did you learn it? You must be a very powerful mage of some sort to perform this." He said, honestly awed at such a display of power.

Grimm blinked. "I don't really know what I am. My mom gave me this right before she died and I taught myself how to use it. Like I said, I'm not really human or a magical creature. Considering my mother was some sort of magical creature - she never told me what - and my father was human, I'm stuck as a halfa." He flipped the book over in his hands. "It comes in handy when it needs to. Easy to win a battle with." He grinned.

"There is nothing wrong with being a halfa." Kynareth frowned, running his fingers through one of his ruined wings. "Many lived in my old village before I took a vow to Nature, Kyne and the Divines. My own gift is in the art of stealth. It is one that kills, and I am not so proud of it." He twirled a feather in his fingers.

"Well, I think I can put up with it." Grimm smiled. He reached out and touched one of the feathers, feeling how rough it was at the moment. Stiff. "So, what? Now that you got me will this get better?"

Kynareth tensed. "I... do not know. It has never happened before." The brunette frowned. "I thought for sure the spirits of the forest would rip them off while I slept." He said very evenly.

"Well, ain't that a pretty image," Grimm scowled. "Would that've killed you?"

"Yes." He confirmed. "It happens when you betray or fail your shrine. I have seen it once before, a woman with much darker wings than I. The feathers were falling out to show the leathery texture underneath. She was working with a group of assassins. When it was brought to light, she was brought to a sacred ground. The spirits grabbed them here," he hooked his fingers under the main bone, close to his shoulder, "And ripped them off." He furrowed his brow, letting go. "I do not want such a fate, though I have failed my sworn duty."

"But you said that they should have done it already," Grimm pointed out. "If they should have done it already, then they obviously have a good reason for _/not/_ doing it. And besides, you would have never gotten to meet me!" he bragged sarcastically. "The oh-so- wonderful Grimm."

"Wonderful Grimm?" Kynareth grinned back, not catching the sarcasm. "I hardly think those two go together. But you are quite a wonderful person!" He amended quickly. "And maybe it is true, the Divines may have other plans. Perhaps only I remain. Or the Gods have truly fallen and the Hearthfire has succeeded." His expression fell. "Or maybe I am here for you. Only time shall tell, I suppose."

Grimm smiled. "Well, of course I'm just that awesome." He flashed his teeth. "But that really sucks, what happened to your people or whatever." A frown. "That's really why I don't have anyone of my own. I don't wanna lose them. I'm risking myself getting attached to _/you/_ of all people. Even as weird as you are," he smirked. "But I'm taking a huge risk, letting you travel with me."

"I am sorry for those you've lost. But you need not worry," Kynareth tilted his head. "harm shall not befall us, I studied in the medical arts!" He assured, looking excited. His wings went up like dog ears, looking a little livelier.

Grimm gave him an odd look, but smiled nonetheless. "That's the spirit, bucko." He laughed, then stopped, eyebrows furrowed. "Shit, watch it!" He shouted, then lunged forward, pushing Kyn out of the way. A strange creature on four legs with black fur and a mutilated face leapt at where Kyn originally was, but instead collided with Grimm's fist. "Fucker," he growled at the creature as it stood up. It just glared at Grim and walked away.

Kynareth yelped, wings flaring as he suddenly found himself on the ground. The huge black standing above him creature thing sent them one last snarl and vanished into the wood. "What was that?!" He squeaked, sitting up.

"A vampdog hybrid." He scowled. "They're like vampdogs, but... They have no human form and they're a lot more violent." He held a hand out to Kyn. "Get up, doofus. I still need to beat the shit out of someone for trying to kill me last week."

Kynareth grabbed his hand and stood, a little sheepish. "Vampires were a common problem, but never had I seen animal versions." He rubbed his neck. "Must violence be retaliated?" He looked up, "We used to teach peace here- to Nature, mostly, but to others as well."

"Yeah, violence could definitely be a factor." He nodded, grimacing. "But I don't necessarily care. The guy tried to kill me, I'm gonna teach him a lesson about what happens when you mess with me." He glared at the ground. "I'm not going to imprison him if he apologizes, though. Just gonna rough him up a little."

The brunette stared at him for a moment. "Alright. But I will go to ensure your safety." He sweeper his hand, letting Grimm lead the way. "In the mean time, why don't you tell me about yourself?"

Grimm blinked. "Alright... Well, I'm- Okay, I don't really know what to say when it comes to this stuff. Not good at having normal conversations with people." He scratched the back of his neck. "Uh... I'm not a people person, as I just said. I like anime- ah, Japanese cartoons. Not even sure you know what a cartoon is... Oh, and I'm just gonna say, if you've anything against gays, get outta here." He jabbed his thumb in the opposite direction they were heading.

He mouthed the word 'cartoon' and shook his head. "I don't understand why I would be against happiness?" Kynareth said, looking confused.

Grimm rolled his eyes. "I forgot you're an old man. I mean gay as in when a man likes another man. In more than a friend way. When a dude has feelings for another dude. You catchin' on, broski?"

"I'm not old!" Kynareth bristled, "I am 21 years of physical age." he retorted. "And I may know what a 'dude' or 'bro-ski' is, but I have no qualms with whom an individual decides to bed." He crossed his arms, looking a little indignant.

Grimm shook his head. "Okay. Cool. You're 21? Awesome. I'm 27." He smirked. "It's a good thing you don't mind, cause I have to admit, I'd be pretty disappointed if you decided to leave. Even if you talk like fucking Shakespeare. But worse."

"May I ask who Fucking Shakespeare is? You say his name a lot. He is a companion?" Kynareth looked curious. "If we speak similarly, I might like to meet him. You speak very oddly. I do not mind, though."

Grimm stared at Kyn for a moment before practically doubling over in laughter. "Dude, Shakespeare is just a famous poet. He's dead, though. Sorry. And also, the word 'bro' is just a short version of 'brother'. It's kind of a term of... Endearment, I guess? I don't know, it's what people call each other when they wanna be friendly. Just thought I'd explain. 'Dude' is basically the same thing." He patted the guy's back once and grinned.

Kynareth looked a little disheartened at the news, but grinned and brightened up at being called an endearing term. "Then we shall have a wonderful journey, bro!" He beamed, pronouncing the term oddly.

Grimm just rolled his eyes playfully, throwing an arm around his shoulders. "We shall," he said. "And hopefully your feathers start to get pretty again. It probably looks sick." He paused. "Before you even ask, 'sick' means cool. Awesome. Good things. At least in this case."

"Ah, I see... I suppose it would, yes." He shook them out, a few twisted ones falling to the floor. "It should help to wash them. I think we are near a stream? Over there." He looked around, pointing off to the side. "And," he gave Grimm a sidelong glance, "What odd clothes you wear are... sick. Very ill indeed." He nodded to himself.

Grimm stretched his neck to see where he was pointing. Indeed there was a stream. "Yup." At Kyn's odd way of saying 'sick', he sighed. "Dude, I'm gonna slap you, I swear to god." He chuckled and they walked over to the stream. "But thanks. You'll see a lot of people wearing odd clothes. Which reminds me, if you're gonna walk around with me, we need to get you a change of clothes. I go into the city a lot and I don't wanna be seen walking around with a guy wearing what you're wearing, no offense. At least humans can't see your wings." They stopped at the edge of the stream.

Kynareth looked up at him, a little shocked, touching his cheek. "You will? I'm sorry." He ducked his head a little and hugged the thin fabric to his chest. "But I am fond of these." He said softly, a little reluctantly.

"Oh, jeez, sorry... I was only kidding. Being sarcastic." He said quickly. "I'm not gonna slap you. I'm not _/that/_ mean. But yeah, we're just gonna have to change your appearance a little. Sorry. But unless you wanna get teased by jackass kids on the street, I'd suggest it." He poked the other man in the forehead, smiling. "You can keep your outfit you've got on now, though. This is a city I visit frequently and I've got a little place here you can keep it."

"I see..." The winged man thought for a moment and nodded slowly. "At least, I think I do." He shrugged and worked off his shirt, showing the deep, ugly looking burned in scar of a sun emblemized on his right pectoral. The skin still looked red and raw, despite the passed of time. Ignoring it, he kneeled and dipped the matted feathers in the water, running his fingers through them.

Grimm cocked his head, then walked over and kneeled as well, taking his gloves off and rinsing his hands. Removing his gloves showed that he had quite a few scars of his own on his arms, and some on his hands. "So, uh... How did all that happen? If you don't mind my asking."

Kynareth looked down at them. "I was chained up and tortured before they sent me to sleep. I had to be sent into a comatose like state to weaken physical and mental resistance in order for the seal to work. This," he ran his finger across the mangled skin, "was the the seal they burned in to, in a sense lock me out of my own body. I do not under why it remains, but it still pulses with energy." He frowned, looking confused. "And what of yourself?"

"My book." He patted his back pocket- technically his butt. "That light you saw, it doesn't come without consequence. Most of the time when I use it, it leaves me with bad burn marks on my hands. That's where the scars on my hands are from. The ones are my arms... Well, that's a different story." He shrugged, whipping his hands to get some of the water off. He put the gloves back on.

The other stood, flapping water droplets off his cleaner looking wings. "You are hesitant to say more and I shall not pry." He said, throwing his shirt back on. "How far is the next town- or, more importantly, the one we're going to?"

"Just outside of this forest and over the hill." He pointed. "We're almost to the edge now." A few minutes later, they were out of the forest and walking over a hill. When they got to the top, Grimm smiled. "Welcome to Wing City." He looked at Kyn. "Kind of appropriate for this situation."

"It's very," He looked awed at the dazzling lights, but there was a bit of sadness in his eyes, "different." He blinked, scrutinizing the buildings from afar. "Must be held up by magic." He mumbled to himself, but shook his head and shot Grimm a puppy dog look. "Will you show me around? Please?"

Grimm twitched a little. That /look/. What the hell?  
"Uh... Yeah." He nodded, looking away quickly. "Come on," he grinned this time, and took off running down the hill. Out of being purely happy from the feeling of rushing down it, he did a few cartwheels and then rolled some of the way down, laughing when he got to the bottom. "Fuck, that's fun."

Kynareth watched from the top of the hill with interest. He waited until the man was at the bottom and called out, a little nervously. "And I supposed to do that too?" He would probably end up ripping his wings off, now that he thought about it.

"Nooo," Grimm called back up. "I did that because I wanted to! Now get your ass down here or no tour for you." He pointed at him, still grinning.

Kynareth resisted the urge to call back that there were no asses nor cattle of any sort around them, but figured it was a "Modern World" joke and let it go. He took a running start and jumped off the side of the hill, opening his wings. He pumped them a few times, veering a little unsteadily but made it down fine. "They are sore." He remarked, rubbing them.

"D'aw. Well, it's prolly cause you haven't used 'em in a long time." Grimm laughed. "They'll get better." He gestured for Kyn to follow him, and they made their way into the city. "Alright, I know it's gonna be a shit of a lot different than what you're used to, and I'm sorry about that, but if you have any questions about what anything is, just ask and I'll explain it to you. But only once." He nodded. He hopped a fence, waited for Kyn, and once they passed a building, they were on a sidewalk in the streets, cars passing by noisily and people pushing past them.

Kynareth squeaked, ducking behind the wall of a building. "I do not like those ugly beasts. They are loud and smell foul." He scrunched up his nose with distaste. "What are they? And the people! The women are barely clothed! Does your wife dress in similar garments?" He eyed a group of women in mini skirts and skimpy dresses nervously.

Grimm grabbed the sleeve of Kyn's shirt and dragged him out, despite his protests. "Those," he pointed to the girls, "are what I like to call 'sluts'. They dress like that for men's attention. I don't like it, though. Then again, I don't like chicks." He laughed. "I don't have a wife! What part of 'I like men' didn't you understand?" He grinned. "And those machines that smell bad, they're cars. They're what humans use to get around. They're faster than walking or running." He explained, dragging him along. "Hmm... Not gonna take you to Hot Topic. You couldn't pull off their clothes. You look like a T-shirt and jeans kinda guy."

"Oh." His cheeks dusted pink a bit. "I figured a man of your age would already have a family and see a lover on the side. You are just with him, then?" The brunette folded his wings up and shied away from the road. "Harlots are sometimes nice folk. They make pleasant conversation and have many stories of antics they have observed." He giggled to himself, remembering a kind young woman tell him about the rat prank pulled in the bakery by some young children. "Horses would make better travel, surely? They are much less noisy and large and can go off paths without damaging Nature." He frowned.

"Yeah," Grimm shrugged. "But humans are stupid. They don't realize what they're doing, and they don't listen to anyone who could possibly think they know better than them." He sighed. "Welcome to present day. Where everything pisses you off."

Kynareth sighed a little sadly and thumbed the white jewel around his neck. "What is our destination, may I ask?" He scuffled his feet on the sidewalk, wincing. They were not at all like the smooth cobblestones he was used to. He kept his face passive, but eyed the odd rock with distaste.

"We'll probably just go to Rue 21 or something. They've got good clothes there." He grabbed Kyn's arm. "C'mon, it's just up ahead." He ran forward, dragging Kyn behind him. They stopped in front of a strip of different stores, one of them being Rue21. Upon entering, a cascade of people exited as well. "Hey, watch it, assholes!" He snapped at the people shoving through. When they finally got through, he sighed with relief. "God, people are so rude." He looked around. Most of the clothes here were darker, with the occasional neon colors. He walked over to the guy's rack, picking out a red shirt with black graffiti art on it. Short sleeved. Then he grabbed a pair of dark-ish blue jeans, and shoved them at Kyn. "Go in through those doors into the room and shut them and get changed. Come out when they're on, I wanna see 'em."

The brunette looked at the clothes in his arms, pushing into a changing room. He looked at the shirt, trying to make sense of the design and how it hot there. Clearly not stitched, like the gold pattern on his own clothes, but vivid. He spent a minute poking around at the garments, trying to figure out how they were made. Then, a little defeated, he pulled off his tunic and folded his wings around his belly to tuck under the shirt, as it didn't have holes sewn into the back. Then he pulled off the silk trousers to wrestle the jeans on, inspecting the odd material. After gathering up his clothes, he padded out of the room to find his companion.

Grimm turned and looked at Kyn when he walked out and grinned. "Not bad." he noted how his wings were somehow tucked under his shirt so that it looked even unnoticeable to Grimm. "We'll cut holes in that for your wings later. But here," he took Kyn's wrist in his hand and stuck a silver chain on it, clasping it around. "Everyone needs an accessory. We'll just take the little tag off after they scan it. Now go change back into your old clothes and we'll go to that little place I told you about so you can officially wear these."

Kynareth did as he was told, coming back out with his thin green garments and followed Grimm to the counter, occasionally wandering off to inspect something that caught his attention- which was often. Or he would sit down and prod the metal on his wrist, admiring the craftsmanship.

"Yo, Kyn, get over here!" Grimm turned around, gesturing for him to come over to the counter. "She needs to scan your bracelet. Just hold your wrist out to her."

The man returned and stuck out his wrist obediently. He eyed the scanner warily but when he received no burn or mark, he smiled happily and fiddled with it again. The check out lady gave him a quizzical look and turned her attention back to Grimm.

"Thanks," he smiled at her.  
"Is he...?"  
"Ah, he... He hit his head. He's my brother. I know, no one can see the resemblance. But he hit his head and thinks he's... I don't even know. But I'm slowly reintroducing him to the world."  
"Aw," she cooed, smiling.  
"Thanks again. Have a nice day," he nodded. "Come on, Kyn. Let's go to that place I was telling you about so you can change."

"We are indeed bros!" Kynareth announced, looking pleased. He waved goodbye to the woman and followed Grimm out of the store. "She was nice. And looked a little like the baker's daughter!" He laughed. "But I supposed it is not unusual to find resemblance in someone in a place with so many people."

"Ya got a point there," he nodded. "It's just around the corner up here." He pointed down the street to where the sidewalk rounded a corner, more people spilling from that direction. "You know, there's over 7 billion people in the world now."

"7 Billion?" The brunette looked confused, tried to count, then shook his head. "I do not... how many cities are in this region? Are they all like this?"

"I have no idea how many cities. There's a bunch more, and they're probably all like this, yeah. There's some small towns nearby, some farms. But mostly cities. I prefer the rural areas. They're nicer and more... natural." He chuckled. "I hate the city."

"Many?" He looked shocked. "There were only 9 major cities here before. A few scattered towns along the main roads with a few houses, an inn, and a store. A garden and a stable too, perhaps." He looked around, dodging a group of people standing around like a nervous highschooler. "I remember Aleswell, a very small town that was near the main middle city, Imperial. It had two houses, an inn, and a large garden right in the center. They had been bothered by a rouge mage who tampered with illusion spells." He hooked one of his fingers into the bracelet and fiddled with it absently. "It was small, but very homely."

"I think I would have liked it, to be honest. I mean, I like the fact that I can get these clothes in this time period, because it's just how I dress, but I think I would've liked living when you did." He mused. "Alright, it's right here." He stopped at the side of the building after they rounded a corner, and gestured to a window low to the ground, almost touching the sidewalk. It was boarded by wooden planks. "Hang on," he stepped forward, lifting a section of the planks. After moving those aside, he stepped through, jumping to the ground. "Now do what I just did!" He called up. "Be careful, it's a bit of a fall."

Kynareth peeked in nervously before following him in. It looked much too like to the old house in Cheydinhal and the rumors that had been floating around it were ones he didn't particularly like. "It is safe to be here?" He looked around.

"It's fine. I come in here whenever I'm in this city. Which is... quite a lot. I always end up coming back here whenever I'm finished seeing a place I wanted to go to. It's perfectly safe as far as I know, I promise." He flipped on a light switch, and the room lit up. It was rather large, containing a lot of pipes sticking out of the walls. It was just a dusty old basement of the building, but it was good enough. It had all the necessities he needed to spend a night or two here. "Alright, I'll cut a couple holes in that shirt and you can get dressed." He did that, then handed it to Kyn. "I'll be in that little closet over there. I'm gonna change my clothes, too." He went to the closet, disappearing behind the doors.

He worked on the new clothes and sat cross-legged on the floor with his old clothes in his lap, folded neatly. The random oddities strewn about distracted him easily and he walked over to inspect some of them, tinkering with this and that but making sure not to break anything. He was interested in poking at the pipes in the wall, trying to figure out what they were used for.

"Water," Grimm stated when he walked out. "They're for transporting water throughout the building." He was dressed in a Black Veil Brides shirt now, hugged tight to his skin. His new jeans were bright yellow with holes in the knees, also skinny jeans - he didn't own a pair of pants that wasn't skinny jeans - and his boots were still on. He had a small silver earring on his left ear, and also had a nose ring in now. It was sapphire.

"By magic?" Kynareth turned from the metal thing, walking back over to Grimm. He looked a bit paler than usual, but seemed more interested in the design of the man's shirt. He seemed confused by the dark graphic, but said nothing. The Black Horse Currier used to wear embroidered tunics to advertise their business and he figured it was like that, but more complex. "Do we stay here tonight?"

"Yeah, we can." He walked over to the couch by the wall, removed the cushions, and then pulled a handle within it. It stretched out to become a bed, and he grinned. "It's clean, don't worry. I'm not a dirty person." He chuckled. "When we go to sleep tonight, you can sleep in this. I'll take the floor."

"Mechanics! I see now." The man smiled. "But surely you shall take it. I am a guest and shall not intrude upon your personal area." He insisted. "Or, I would suggest sharing, but I am sure your lover and or spouse would not approve." He rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish.

Grimm shook his head. "/I'm not married, doofus./" He laughed. "And I don't have a boyfriend." He grinned. "We can share, I don't mind."

"Then we shall do that." He hunched his wings over and brought a hand up to cup the crystal in his palm. It gave a little glow. "It's just passed sunset, I believe." He smoothed his thumb over the surface and let it go. "So shall we talk until it is time for us to sleep, or is there something else that you need to do?"

"The only thing I need to do is clean my weapons. And by weapons I do not mean my book." He chortled. He pulled out a box from underneath his bed and opened it, sitting on the bed. He patted the spot next to him. "So. Tell me. Do you age at all?"

"Of course I do. All Guardians are mortal." Kynareth sat down and glanced over at the box. "Few are selected to join the ranks of the Saints when they pass if they have made a major contribution or have served the Divines all their life. I believe Lady Kyne was favored for it." His face twisted between a grimace and a look of respect. "What are all of those?"

"Some pocket knives and daggers," he shrugged. "I take a new one every time I come here. Trade it in." He smiled. "But that's not even the best part." He lifted the section of the box that held the knives to reveal another compartment underneath which had some cleaning supplies. He set it off to the side, held out his arm, took off the glove on his left arm, and within a few seconds, his arm was transforming into a small-ish machine gun.

Kynareth looked on with a look of horror and fascination. "You transform yourself into a weapon?" He looked half like he wanted to back away and half like he wanted to run his hands over what used to be Grimm's arm in curiosity. The weapon, if that was indeed what is was, looked small and lithe, but very deadly.

"Only that arm, but yes." He nodded. "It can do more." The next thing Kynareth knew, Grimm's arm was transforming into a scythe-like weapon from the shoulder down.

He looked between the curving blade and Grimm's face, mouth opened in realization. "I am starting to see the resemblance, now." He said, awed. "My power is somewhat similar, but not as outright lethal." He coughed into his palm, grimacing a little.

Grimm smiled a little again, his arm going back to normal. "Your power?"

He plucked a feather from his wing and it turned to silver, tip sharpened with feather-like details carved into it. "They have to grow back, but I can turn them into these daggers." He handed over the delicate looking metal feather. "They are of silver, and held quite some value."

Grimm looked at the feather curiously, then grinned. "Dude, that's awesome!" He poked at his own arm. "I hardly ever use my arm as a weapon because it always leaves it tingly and weird feeling after I use it. And that plus the burns on my hands usually isn't fun."

"You have retained feeling in your arm?" He looked concerned, reaching over and running his fingers over the skin of his arm. "That must be.. less than ideal."

Grimm bit his lip to keep from flinching at the contact. He liked it, but it startled him. "It is, I guess. It's not any worse than the fact that I never know if my hands are going to burst into flames when I use my book." He pointed out.

"You do not have fire-resistant charms? We used to hang them in the shrine." He pulled back, setting his hands in his lap. "And surely the risks outweigh the benefits of using such a book? Especially if it is only used for death."

"I only use it when I really need to," he said. "I don't actually get into that many fights, believe it or not." He laughed. "But it comes in handy when I need it." He reached into his box and pulled out a few daggers, cleaning them off.

Kynareth nodded, watching him. This, at least, was familiar. "Was your arm constructed, then? My power came biologically, but yours seems like it was crafted, was it not?"

"Mine was, yes. I don't remember when, or how, though. It was somewhere in my teens and I had been kidnapped and the person kidnapping me must have done this in my sleep, because when I woke up, I could do that." He rolled his eyes. "/That/ was fun to wake up to."

"I am sorry." He wrapped one arm around his midsection, hugging warmly. "It is a terrible thing to awaken too and difficult to come to terms with such adjustments." He said sincerely.

Grimm's eyes widened a little, surprised at the contact once again. He wasn't good at warm physical contact. "Yeah, well, it's over and done with... But thanks."

Kynareth rested his head against the man's shoulder. "Such things take time to heal, be it a day or 50 years. Though it is in the past, it is not always forgotten." Yet he retreated, mouth tugged down. "I-" he coughed a few times, clearing his through with a grimace, "I know of such things."

Grimm found himself missing the pressure of Kyn's head on his shoulder, but he shrugged the feeling off. With a cock of his head, he asked, "Are you talking about what happened to Lady What'shername?"

He took a deep breath. "Not exactly." He said quietly. "She was a great teacher and kind to visitors, but she was also very strict in the upholding of the rules. I was the only male apprentice with three girls, all younger. Normally, men are not accepted into such sacred practice, but I was in no position to refuse." He plucked at his clothing. "I was not as skilled as they, nor as balanced. This," he pulled out the crystal necklace, "acts a a focus of sorts. So I do not accidentally use Nature's gift inopportunely. She had always favored them, as they did not need such devices, and I would take blame of any misdoings of the girls, for they outranked me. It was my duty, in a way." He tucked his wings in close. "Of course, I respected Lady Kyne, as I was hers to do what she wished with, yet..." He bowed his head. "I do not feel as grateful as I should."

"I don't really know what to say..." Grimm sighed. "You respected her, right? That's good. But you're only mortal. You can't help that you don't feel as grateful as you should. There's probably a reason for it."

"You are right." Kyn nodded. "I do owe her my life. I am at least thankful for that." He swallowed thickly, nearly choking on the vile taste in the back of his throat. "The moon shall soon be fully in the sky, shall we rest now?"

Grimm gave him an odd look. "I guess. But are you okay? You look like you're choking and it's scaring me."

"It is nothing." He assured with a smile. "Just a... soreness. Of the throat."

"You're sure...? Because seriously, if you know it's going to turn into something worse, I'd suggest you tell me right this instant because I can buy medicine for you."

"It will be gone by morning." He shrugged, not very worried.

"Promise?" Grimm raised his eyebrows.

"Promise." Kyn nodded.

"Good," he grinned. "Your wings aren't gonna attack me all night long, are they?"

"They are not that unruly- usually." The brunette shot back, laughing. "I shall keep them tucked in where they will not be a nuisance." He said, folding them up under his shirt.

"Cute," Grimm smirked, patting the side of his face. He blinked. "I don't know why we put on new clothes if we're just going to go to sleep anyway."

"I do not understand either, but where I lived, I had to wear plain woven garments to sleep in. The silk ones are for when we see visitors. Both were usually a little large, but comfortable." He curled his toes and shrugged.

"You can borrow some of my stuff," he shrugged. "Hang on." He went to the large closet again and returned with a large black Tshirt and a pair of boxers. He himself was just in his boxers, no shirt. "If you wanna sleep shirtless it's fine."

Kyn accepted the shirt with a grateful nod and changed quickly before sitting back down on the bed. "I do have one more question before we sleep, if you do not mind."

Grimm threw himself back on the bed, propping his head up. He grinned at Kyn. "I don't mind at all, good sir."

"Why is it that you have shown me such kindness?" His hand ran over the blanket nervously. "You have not merely pointed me in the direction of the nearest town and wished me farewell. You have done this for me. Why?"

Grimm sat up slowly, looking down at his feet on the bed. "I... I don't really know. I've never really had a friend, so... Maybe on some unknown level, I assumed... We could be?" He shook his head and scowled. "Look what you've done! I've gone soft."

Kyn looked up and gave a little grin. "That is not so bad. I am glad you can call me a friend. Bro. Whichever." He crawled under the blankets, wiggling himself into a comfortable position. He made sure his wings were tucked snugly around his midsection and were in a comfortable position to lay on. After vainly clearing his throat a few times, he settled down and stared up at Grimm.

Grimm sighed, pursing his lips. He settled down again as well and looked at Kyn for a moment. "Thanks for tagging along, though."

"And thank you for letting me." He smiled.

"No problem." He poked him in the stomach, snorting. "Let's sleep now. I'm tired."

Kyn nodded and buried his face into the pillow, closing his eyes and drifting off almost instantly.

_****__****__****__****__**[GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_]  
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_**[GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**__****__**~**__**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_]  
_**[GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**__****__**~**__**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN~**__**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_~_**GRYN**_]  


Grimm watched him doze off, and he soon closed his own eyes, falling asleep quickly.  
When he woke up in the morning, he woke up to Kyn's feet. Turned out he'd somehow flipped the way he was facing in the bed and now his head was where his feet were supposed to be. He groaned softly, turning over. Bad decision. He fell off the bed and landed with the thud on the ground, letting out a small yelp.

Kyn jumped up at the sound, stumbling over to the edge of the bed and helping him back up. "Are you alright?" He asked, voice rasping and body shaking a little. He had gathered up the blankets and folded them back onto the bed, now hovering by Grimm's side.

"I'm fine," he chuckled. "Thanks- Wha, hey, are you okay?" He asked, noticing the way he was shaking.

He nodded, hands tucked around his stomach. "Your arm will bruise if you do not put cold water on the swelling." He pointed to the red mark on the man's arm, blinking.

He raised an eyebrow, but did as the man told him. When he came back, he put his face close to Kyn's and looked him in the eye, narrowing his own eyes. "You're sick." He stated. "It didn't go away. Liar."

"It will go away." He protested. "As all common illnesses do. Does it not work that way anymore?" Kyn frowned, looking concerned. "I was shown how to treat wounds, not-" he leaned over, coughing into his open palm. That disgusting taste was back and when he pulled away, there was an inky black smear on his palm. "Oh."

Grimm's eyes widened. "What the hell is that?" He pointed at it.

The brunette looked a little uneasy. "I do not know. It is not normal?" He fought the urge to gag and wipe his hand, but walked as calmly as he could manage into the bathroom to wash it off.

"Coughing up black ink or whatever the fuck that was is _/not/_ normal. At least not for me or the human race." Grimm muttered.

Kyn went a little pale. "Then we have a problem." He winced, rubbing his throat a little. "Perhaps you are right, then. I am not feeling all that well anymore. And to think I..." he shook his head. "I am sorry, I insisted on sharing a bed. Perhaps that was not wise. Do you feel alright?"

"I feel fine right now, other than my arm," he shrugged. "But what should we do? I don't think there's medication for what you've got..."

He looked a little lost. "I am unsure. But you had mentioned earlier about going after someone. Shall we do that while we think on it?" He suggested, shrugging a little hopelessly.

"Well, I dunno, I don't wanna go after 'em while you're sick. Didn't _/you/_ mention something about the fact that you can get sick or something from being neglected- Oh, wait, no, you said that your feathers wilt from being sick or neglected, never mind... Fuck."

Kyn blinked, watching him ramble. "I will be fine, I will not hinder you!" He promised, smiling uncertainly.

"It's not that," Grimm sighed. "I'm considering you my friend, now, so I'm just worried about you. Sorry for worrying, gosh." He chuckled. "Alright, fine, I'll just... We'll go get that guy, alright? I'd let you stay here in rest but I'm afraid something will happen to you if I'm not around." He admitted.

He nodded, walking over to collect his new clothes and change, stretching out and flexing his wings. "I would be very bored here." He waved a hand, "Even with all of these odd things here, if you are not here to explain them." He linked his fingers together, looking down. "And I do not want you to worry. Or get hurt. That's why I must come."

"I'm not gonna get hurt, I promise." Grimm chuckled. "I might get banged around a little, but nothing more than that." He got dressed into what he'd put on yesterday (yellow pants, ect.) and then put a stool underneath the window. "C'mon, doofus, let's go." He grinned.

"I think that classifies as getting hurt!" Kyn called out after him, following him up. "He is located in this same city?"

"Yup, just on the edge." He confirmed. "Heh, boy, is he ever in for a surprise." He grinned and began walking down the street. It took them a good half an hour to get to the closer edge, and when they did, he stopped in front of a building. "Oh, hey," he mused. "Look at that. We didn't even have to go in and get him! He's right there!" he laughed, pointing at a blonde man walking up to the building. "You can watch, if you like. Though it's might not be pretty." He looked at him.

Kyn stood on standby, waiting to see if things got unpleasant at all. He coughed a few more times, the black liquid running through his fingers. He kept his wings stretched out, though, just in case.

As Grimm walked over to the blonde man, he grinned. This would be fun. After dragging him into the ally way near the building and had a good few minutes of fighting, he decided to spare his life. A few punches and nasty words were thrown around, Grimm managing to get a good hit in the eye, leaving him with a bit of a black eye. He let the guy crawl away in fear and walked back out to Kyn. "Aaaand I'm back. That was fun."

Kynareth still looked disapproving, but he dropped his defensive stance and folded his wings back. "Surely you could have just reported him to the Guard?" He said weakly, shoulders slumped. He was about suggest they head back, but a loud 'BANG' rang out through the air. Instantly, he was alert and bringing Grimm to the ground with his wings flared and gleaming metal, like a shield. No second attack came, though, and Kyn checked over the man beneath him for injuries, finding a nasty looking wound on the back of his leg.

Grimm's eyes were wide and his leg burned, but he tried to keep his voice steady. "What the... What the /hell/ was that?!" He gritted out, hand flying to his leg as he curled a bit.

"I can fix this..." Kyn pulled back, on his knees. "I can fix this, don't worry!" He sounded more sure this time, and he scooped Grimm up into his arms and the metal reverted back to feathers. "I..." He took off into the air, white knuckled grip on the man tightening as they got to sky-scraper level. "Which way out of the city?"

"T- To the right is closest." Grimm said, cringing. His leg /burned/ and it hurt and he could have sworn is was throbbing. Jesus /Christ/.

He nodded and veered off that way, still a little unsteady. A few minutes later, he landed a ways into the forest where they had first met, setting Grimm on the ground as gently as he could manage when he was panicking. "Alright, just, um.. just stay still." His fingers fumbled with the necklace a moment as it started glowing. His power coaxed a few vine-like plants to grow around them, a few wrapping around Grimm's injured leg. Kyn leaned over and sliced them open, the thick liquid bleeding into the wound and it began to close up.

Grimm gasped, feeling the wound close up. "What on... What'd you just do?" he uncurled and relaxed, staring at Kyn.

"This is what I've been studying ever since I was accepted into the shrine." Kyn leaned back, sitting cross-legged. "How to interact peacefully with Nature around us, and in turn, how to call upon Her aid in times of need."

Grimm sighed. "That's... Neat." He chuckled. "But... What the fuck happened back there?"

"That man that you had went after, he was holding a..." The brunette drew it in the dirt, "an object like this?" He outlined a very simple looking shape, but was clearly supposed to be a gun. "And it made a loud noise and a small flash."

"That was him?" Grimm rolled his eyes. "Fucker. I thought I made it /clear/ that I wanted him off my back!"

Kyn nodded and checked his leg again, moving the plants away. "It will take a few days to feel normal again but how is it?" He rubbed his thumb over the mostly healed flesh, checking. A quick movement off in the distance made him look up, seeing nothing, and he bent down over it again.

Grimm sighed. "It's fine, I think. Feels weird like you said." He chuckled. "But is that guy gonna come after us, do you think? Well, yeah, he probably will... I mean, it's Jerry, for crying out loud."

His head jerked up again, and he swore this time it was closer. "Yes, perhaps, but... Is there any possible way he has found us this quickly? I sense movement nearby... Definitely a person, and.." He grazed his fingers into the dirt, reaching out through the foliage. Suddenly, he recoiled his power as if he'd been struck physically. "Very, very old."

"It's possible," Grimm narrowed his eyes, looking around. He straightened up and into a crouch, looking around him. "I can feel something, too. But I never got this when I was around him... He's not human, is he? I could have sworn he was."

"No, not human at all. He's older than I, much older." Kyn hesitantly reached out again, feeling nothing. "That's odd..." His eyes narrowed in concentration, again, getting nothing. He withdrew his power, feeling a little dazed. "I could've have sworn I felt something."

"I don't doubt it... He'd want to kill me, I know that. But I'm not gonna fucking let him." He stood up, still looking around, his hand pressed to his back pocket where his book was. He was ready to yank that thing out, or if worse came to worse, use his gun or scythe.

Kynareth got to his feet as well, looking uneasy and a tad sick. "I do not think this is your friend." His eyes caught the fluttering of red robes and he froze, watching the figure that suddenly materialized in front of them. The emblemized hood covered their face, but from the markings alone, he recognized it.

Grimm raised an eyebrow at the figure in front of them, eyes still narrowed. "Who's this?"

He shot out a hand, gripping Grimm's sleeve and pulling him back as he slowly retreated. "It has been many, many years. I cannot believe the cult has survived." The robe figured smirked, crossing his arms with a casual sigh. "Hardly survived. There are a few scattered members, but it's hardly much of a cult anymore. Nontheless, our goal still remains." He took a step foreword and Kyn backed off even more.

"You wanna tell me what the /hell/ is going on?" Grimm growled. "Only half magic, here! I'm not very well educated in this shit."

"Get away from him, Grimm." Kyn tugged on his arm, a little desperately. The robed man seemed to have just noticed him. "Got yourself a bodyguard, have ya? Knew I was coming? That's cute..." The man tilted his head. "I'm known as Umbracano, if you will. Leader of the Cult of Hearthfire AKA newly renamed Mythic Dawn. Your friend and I have a very long relationship." He chuckled. "Now that he's up and moving, I can put him down again. But, not like before." He grinned, eyes glowing a steady orange. "Unless, you think you can face me? The one that not even the Gods could terminate? Well, the Gods have fallen now.." He paced a little, with a twisted pleasant smile. "And little Kynareth is all alone again..."

"He's going to hurt you, Kyn. No, scratch that, he's gonna _/kill/_ you. I can' just let that happen." He hissed. "I _/won't/_ let that happen."

Umbracano laughed, looking thoroughly amused. "Oh, that's the problem, Grimm." He drew out the name mockingly. "You see," he held up a hand with the emblem of the sun on it as it began to glow. "You really can't stop me." The green-eyed brunette began to scream, clawing at his chest as he fell to his knees. Light poured out from underneath his shirt, right over where Kyn's hand scrabbled at. The Guardian lashed out with his power, sending vines and various other deadly looking plants to wrap around Umbracano but they shriveled away, burnt.

Grimm's eyes flared with anger as he watched his friend fall, and he snarled. He had to keep control of his anger, though. If he didn't... He didn't want to think about what would happen. Reaching into his back pocket, he took out his book, holding it in front of him and opening it. "/Enter/!" He screamed, hoping this wouldn't fail him.

Umbracano frowned, wavering, but nothing happened. "Oh, I see how it is." He closed his fist and Kynareth howled, collapsing bonelessly to the ground. "Perhaps you are quite worth my time then." He folded his arms behind his back and grinned. "But your spell is still not strong enough to take me. I am ancient. I was here before the first Saint was created, before the war on the Elves, before, even the rise of the Ayleids. Perhaps, in time you will get better... But I will succeed, you both will die, and I shall be king of the Ayleids once more." With a flick of his wrist, he was gone in a whisp of smoke.

Grimm sucked in a breath, collapsing to his knees on the ground. The book had never knocked the breath out of him like that. He looked down at his hands; burned and bleeding. Shit. "Kyn, are you- Kyn!" He gasped, scrambling over to him, despite his stinging hands. "Kyn, get up."

The brunette remained unresponsive, but alive. The glow of his necklace, though, got a little brighter as a few plants tried to wrap themselves around Grimm's hands and repair the burned foliage where Umbracano stood. Kyn's eyelids fluttered a little, but he didn't move.

Grimm could tell he was alive, and he let out a sigh of relief, not even paying attention to his hands. When they were fixed, he picked Kyn up bridal style, his head lolling against his chest. "Alright, I'm taking you home." He took a deep breath and ran through the forest, finally coming out and to the hill. He raced down that as well and made it into the city, eventually making it to his little room. He jumped down into it and set Kyn on the bed, brushing some of the hair out of the other man's eyes. He needed to stay alive.

_**[Timeskip]**_

Kyn awoke the next day, curled up into himself with one hand pressed to his chest for dear life. He coaxed his body into a sitting position, feeling a little nauseous again but it was something he quickly pushed back. "Grimm?" He called out softly, fingers twisted in the blankets.

Grimm barely heard the sound of his name being called from the little room. He was sitting outside of it on the curb, guitar in hand. It was a little side-thing he did for money. Usually got a good 50 bucks within an hour. He was currently playing "All In" by Lifehouse and also singing, people passing by and every now and then one would place money inside the guitar case. When he heard his name, however, he stopped, put the guitar pick in his mouth, and peeked in to see Kynareth sitting up in the bed. "Hey!" he grinned with the pick in his teeth. "You're awake!"

"I... yes." He scootched to the edge of the bed, rubbing at the slightly stinging sensation on his chest. "What happened? Did he leave? And... that noise, what was it? It was quite pleasant."

"He..." Grimm scratched his head, "I honestly have no fucking clue what he did. You collapsed and... It was scary. But he did leave." He looked down. /Thank God. Or I don't know what would have happened/.  
"Oh," he smiled at the last question, "You liked that? I sing and play guitar." He pulled the guitar in front of him, adjusting the pick in his hand and began to sing. "All night, staring at the ceiling counting the minutes I'm feeling this way, so right here, I'm not losing you this time. Now I'm all in, nothing left to hide. I'm falling, harder than last time. I spent a week away from you last night. Cause you know I'm all in, I'm all in for life." He stopped, looking up at Kyn. "You like?"

"It is wonderful!" Kyn grinned and his wings quivered a bit. "I have not heard of such music before, it is a welcome change." He crossed his legs and frowned in thought. "Only sailors ever sang with such complex, odd meanings. Their songs I will never understand, but they were pleasant to listen to."

"A lot of music is like that nowadays. You'll hear it all over the place. One of the things I like about the world; it's music." He grinned, then furrowed his brow. "So... Are you okay? That... You were in a lot of pain. I could tell. Your weird magic stuff healed my hands, considering they were... Basically falling apart." He grimaced. "But are /you/ okay?"

The brunette hummed contentedly. "I was unaware... but I hope to hear more." He tugged on the collar of his shirt. "I suppose I am not physically harmed anymoreso than before. The spell though... it felt different." He tugged the piece of clothing off, wincing as the rougher material rubbed up against the seal, which looked as if it had been freshly burned in again. "He did not hurt you, though? It was the book?"

"Oh, well, he must have done /something/ to make the book do that to me." Grimm said. "It was way more powerful. Never felt it or seen it do that before. I'm surprised it didn't singe the rest of my skin off and burn me alive." He chuckled. Walking over to Kyn, he cocked his head at the burn mark. "So... what is that?"

"It's from when they locked me up." Kyn rubbed at his temples, trying to think. "A man came in in plain red robes came in and called Lady Kyne out... the girls were in town, so I do not know what became of them, one had taken chains and bound my wrists to the alter when another with a more dignified stance held out his palm, and on it was this." He pointed to the burned in Sun. "He held it here and it... transferred. But burned horribly. It was a paralysis of sorts, I believe, but now I know it held much deeper rein over me." He sighed. "They clamped an enchanted metal ring around the chain of the necklace so that it framed the jewel. It... prevented me from calling out to Nature. Then, they weakened my body to get at my mind... and then they next thing I knew, I was waking up in the ruins of the shrine."

Grimm stared at him, eyes wide. "That's... Awful." He breathed. "I can't... I can't even imagine going through something like that." He looked down, blinking. "I'm sorry. I let him almost /kill/ you. So much for protecting you... But I wonder what would have happened if he had seen- Er, never mind." He scratched the back of his neck.

"It's not your fault, I would not ever put you up against him for my own life. You should have just run." Kyn looked pained at the thought of Grimm being killed on his behalf. "Seen... your arm?" He tilted his head in confusion.

Grimm bit his tongue. "Sure," he lied. "Let's go with that." He strummed his guitar, going to the tune of "Enchanted." Sitting down, he smiled a little. "There I was again tonight, forcing laughter faking smiles, same old tired lonely place... Walls of insincerity, shifting eyes and vacancy, vanished when I saw your face. All I can say is it was enchanting to meet you..." He looked up, seeing Kyn staring at him. "Sorry. Habit."

"No, that was... nice." He smiled brightly, marveling at the sudden softness to the secretive man's voice. Grimm, he realized, was someone who had difficulties letting others in. Kyn would respect that, but he was the exact opposite. He'd spill his whole life story if you were interested enough to listen. Anything he could learn about the odd man at all, he would mentally file away for later. So, intent on discovering a little more, he went ahead and asked. "Have you ever been with someone? Male or female?" His ducked his head, looking a little sheepish. Surely, if he did not yet have a spouse, there was once someone there?

Grimm looked up, startled by the sudden question. He smirked anyway. "Never been with a girl. I had some... Weird relationship with this guy when I was 21. But I didn't want either of getting hurt, so... I kind of pushed him away. I knew I would have just hurt him, and he probably would have hurt me." He fiddled with his gloves.

"Oh... I am sorry for that." The brunette frowned, looking at his toes. "I suppose relationships are difficult to figure out." He shrugged.

Grimm shrugged, too. "They are." He set his guitar down, leaning it against the wall with the pick shoved in the strings. "What about you? Ever had a girlfriend? Er, spouse? You know what I mean."

Kyn's mouth quirked down. "No, I have not. Having a lover was strictly forbidden." He said softly. "I had subtly been courted by the blacksmith's apprentice once while visiting Chorrol for a few days. He was kind and very talented, but I could not have that sort of relationship." He briefly chuckled. "I heard he married Jasmine's daughter not long after and they opened a shop together."

Grimm nodded. "So it was a dude. Cool." He chuckled. "But that sucks. I-"  
"Lacy!"  
Grimm looked up, his head snapping toward the window. Lacy?  
"Lacy, come on. I want to get this thing set up before anyone sees." It was a girl's voice. Grimm thought it sounded vaguely familiar, but he wasn't sure.  
"Hey, come on..." he gestured for Kyn to follow, hopping up to the window and going outside. There was no one he recognized.

Kynareth scrambled up after him, looking around. "Who are we looking for?" He asked, spotting nothing really out of the ordinary.

Grimm looked around some more. "I thought I heard someone I knew..." he mused. He walked forward, looking around the corner. There was a small, dark ally way, and Grimm peered in, seeing a tall, skinny but fit looking girl. A small child with long hair stood by her. Suddenly, the taller girl lifted her leg, stomped it down, and a tent of earth rose from the ground- this was one of the few ally ways with actual earth as the ground.  
"Hey!" Grimm called. The girls both suddenly turned around, the taller one glaring at him. She immediately had her hand held near her head, a flame producing over it, ready to strike Grimm. But when she looked at him, she blinked. "No-Name?" she cocked her head.

Kyn poked his head around the corner of the alleyway Grimm just went down, hearing voices as well. He saw the one child call out No-Name... he looked up at his friend. "You are acquainted already?"

Grimm stared back at the girl, eyebrows furrowed. "I don't know... I can't see her. Yo, chica!" he waved. The girl kept her head cocked, pushing the smaller girl behind her as she came forward. Soon, the light illuminated her form. She had long black hair that went down to her butt, although it had streaks of red, white, and yellow in it. It was a bit shaggy, but it looked good. She had black skinny jeans with rips in them, a yellow tank top on, and had combat boots very similar to Grimm's. She had different colored eyes; one brown, one green.  
The little girl behind her also had long hair, though it was brown. She had on glasses and looked to be about 8 or 9. The taller girl looked to be 10 or so years older.  
Grimm twitched. "No way. Rin?"  
'Rin' suddenly beamed, running forward and tackling him. "No-Name!" she laughed. "And friend!" she gestured to Kyn.

"Er, yes. Hello." Kyn waved a bit nervously, but offered a genuine smile. He tucked his wings, inspecting them quizzicaly. Surely such young children should not be along in such a city? He frequently saw them in his own cities, but they were much smaller than now.

Rin stood up, pulling Grimm off the ground. "Jesus, No-Name! You scared me!"  
Grimm smirked. "Ha. Scared? You? How is that even possible?"  
"Oh, shut up!" she smacked his arm.  
"So," Grimm inspected her. "How old are you now? Last time I saw you, you were fourteen. Lacy was three."  
"I'm 19 now." Rin smiled. "And you're... 27?"  
Grimm nodded. "Jeez, 19. You've both gotten... Big. You look a lot stronger now. You've been working on your bending?"  
Rin beamed. "You know it." She turned to Kyn. "So what's your name? And relationship to ol' No-Name here?"

"Kynareth Fanacasecul, pleasure to meet your acquaintance." He gave a little half bow. "I.. suppose you could say he found me out in the forest." He rubbed his arm, brow drawn.

Rin smirked. "You're neat." Lacy peeked out from behind her, a curious expression on her face. She furrowed her brow when she saw the scar on Kyn's front, but didn't say anything. "Lacy, remember No-Name?" Rin grinned.  
"I remember." Lacy nodded.  
"Okay, look. You can stop calling me No-Name. The name's Grimm. Well, nickname, anyway. But I don't like my real name." He grimaced.

Kyn looked up. "A nick-name? I suppose that makes more sense." He chuckled to himself, scuffing at the dirt with his toes. "May I ask who you are?"

"Yup!" Rin nodded. "We're Wanderers, just like No-Na- er, Grimm. Bumped into each other a few years back and Grimm took care of us for a year or so. Nice guy." She snorted.  
"I'm Rin Tahoe, and this is my sister Lacy." The girl answered. Lacy played with the hem or her skirt. "I'm an earthbender and a firebender, and Lacy's an earthbender."  
"She's some kind of new breed of bender." Grimm told Kyn. "A bender should only be able to bend one element, unless you're the Avatar, and Rin was the first person born with the ability to bend two elements. There are a few others out there, but not many." Rin smiled proudly at Grimm's explanation.

"A bender? I have not heard of such titles." Kyn cocked his head, piecing together the explanation. "But it is an honor to meet one with such unique abilities as yourselves." His gaze flickered between the three of them. "Ah, yes, he is very kind! He has shown me wonderful hospitality and I am very grateful." He nodded, grinning.

"He's kind of a permenant guest." Grimm snorted. He looked to Rin again. "You haven't had any..."  
"Incidents?" she finished for him. "Three. You?"  
"One or two..." he admitted. At Kyn's strange look, he laughed nervously. "Heh. Never mind."

Kynareth looked between the two strangely and nodded. "Well, how have your travels faired thus far?" He asked Rin as a way to break up the tension. He looked over to Lacy, whom hadn't said much of anything, with curiosity, but kept focused on Rin and Grimm's conversation.

"You talk funny," Lacy smiled.  
"Lacy!" Rin hissed. She smiled at Kyn. "We're fine. Things get difficult, but we make it through. With out bending, basically anything is possible." She grinned.

"It is fine, I am quite behind on modern life." Kyn assured her, sending Lacy a wink. "May I ask, what is bending? If I understand correctly, it is control over the elements, yes? And there are categories?"

Lacy beamed. "Bending is control over the elements, yeah." She nodded. "Earth, water, fire, and air. There are subcategories to earthbending and waterbending, too. For water, there's healing, bloodbending, and plantbending. For earth, there's metalbending, and sandbending. The Avatar is the only person with the power over all elements, including energybending."  
Rin smiled. "She knows her stuff."

"I... believe I have heard of bloodbending before." He furrowed his brow. "Though it was called quite something else. It was used by rouges and bandits, mostly. Renegade mages. It was- is a dark power. Those who used it surrendered their minds to Lorkhun and Aedra, the makers of Mundus; the realm in the sky. It is best known for the planet Nirn and it's two moons; Masser and Secunda." He chuckled, rubbing a hand on his arm. "I suppose that knowledge was lost with time."

"Only the most powerful waterbenders - masters - can bloodbend. But it doesn't really do anything to your mind, that I know of. You just have control over another person's body by bending the water in their blood, and it's extremely unpleasant." Rin grimaced. "Had it done to me, once. Technically, it's illegal. But this jackass we met on the road didn't care."

"The technique has been perfected over time? A frightening thought. I suppose that..." Kyn stopped and frowned, shaking his head. "You had been attacked unprovoked? That seems to be increasingly prevalent now... You have healed since then?" He asked and coughed harshly into his palm, lips twisted in a grimace.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It doesn't really... Harm you. Only when it's happening. After they free you, though, you're fine." She shrugged.  
Grimm looked at Kyn. "Seriously, what is /_up_/ with that cough, dude?"

Kyn gave a helpless shrug, hooking a finger through a belt loop. "I felt fine the other day. Perhaps it is... a varying thing? Or a side affect of the seal?" He bit his lip, staring at his toes.

"You sure that's what that is?" Grimm raised an eyebrow.

He looked up with a sheepish expression. "No?"

Grimm rolled his eyes. "You're an idiot. But I'm really hoping it's one of those."

Kyn nodded in agreement. "If not, then I am not sure. Normally, I'd ask Lady Kyne or seek advice at the shrine of Julianos. Neither of which are possibilities, however." His frown deepened.

Grimm pursed his lips. "...Okay." He smiled a little.  
"You guys are weird." Rin shook her head. "And nice wings, bro." She gestured to Kyn.

"Ah, thank you, Lady Rin." His wings perked up happily and he gave a little half bow. "You wish to call me a bro as well?" His head tilted a bit, confused.

"No need for the Lady- Er, yes. Lady Rin." She nodded. "That's my name! And of course, why wouldn't I? I basically call anyone I like 'bro' whether you're a dude or a chica."

Kyn quirked an eyebrow. "Because you are a Lady and it is an endearing term?" He looked a little puzzled. "Even outside the shrine, I am duty bound to serve those above me; which you are. It is... just not something I am used to." He shrugged.

"I'm above you?" Rin asked. "Weird. I would think that you were above me, what with the gnarly wings and whatnot." She shrugged.

"I was raised to value women higher than myself, as it was custom for them to partake in the running of the shrines. I was an exception, and thus serve them because they are above me. And it is respectful." He explained with a shrug and small smile.

"A woman being favored above a man. I like that." She smirked, looking at Grimm. "Kneel!"  
Grimm raised an eyebrow. "Um, how about no?"  
Rin pouted. "Fine."  
"Rin! Piggy back ride?" Lacy looked up at her.  
"Well, we're not moving, but okay." She crouched down, letting Lacy climb up on her back.  
"Can I touch your feathers?" Lacy asked Kyn, reaching over Rin's shoulders.

Kyn nodded, extending a wing out to her for her to grasp. "It is not that way any longer?" He asked, looking between Rin and Grimm.

"It's... Well, it's called 'equal' now." Grimm snorted. "But men still seem to think that they're the higher power over women." He rolled his eyes. "I may be a guy, but I really don't believe that. Can a guy bleed from his- never mind."

"I thought one could bleed anywhere?" Now he was confused, but shook the statement off. "Anyway, is there a specific destination that you were headed, or are you just.." He waved his hand. "Wherever?"

"We're wherever." Rin shrugged. "Right now we just planned on staying in my little earth tent here!" She pointed to it in the alley way. A rat suddenly ran out from a crack in the wall, and Rin grimaced. She shot a little fireball at the spot near it, scaring it away. "I hate rats."

Kyn chuckled. "Then you would not like places like Arpenia and Sedor, though they tend to live mostly in caves. There are sometimes rats as large as dogs. I heard Anvil was having trouble with them, but they away from Bruma. Too cold." He pursed his lips in thought before realizing he was rambling to himself and apologized.

"Hey, it's fine." Rin laughed. "I ramble about shit all the time."  
"It's true. She does." Lacy sighed.

Kyn chuckled and looked over at Grimm. "Do they know of your wonderful talent for music?" He asked with a grin. "I'm sure they'd love to hear it!"

Grimm shook his head. "I didn't know how to play those few years back." He smiled. "Oh, shush. I'm sure they have better things to do."  
Lacy giggled. "I wanna hear!"  
Grimm sighed, smiling. "Okay, okay. Fine." He went down into the little room, getting his guitar and pick. He stood by his box outside with the money in it, then began playing. "A warning to the people, the good and the evil, this is war. A warning to the prophet, the liar, the honest, this is war. It's the moment of truth and a moment to lie, it's the moment to live and the moment to die. It's the moment to fight, the moment to fight, to fight, to fight, to fight! To the right, to the left, we will fight, to the death! To the edge of the earth, it's a brave new world from the last to the first. To the right, to the left, we will fight, to the death! To the edge of the earth, it's a brave new world, it's a brave new world." He stopped, and looked at them. "There. Happy?" He'd gotten some money from people passing by.  
Lacy beamed. "You're voice is pretty!"

Kynareth nodded in agreement, beaming. "It reminds me much of Cyrodiil when the priests of the chapel of Diabella were slain and rumors of the uprising of Umaril were coming to light. It is an event I was not able to see the end of, but since the world has not ended, I suppose he has been slain."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but cool." Rin chuckled. She turned to Grimm. "You've got a great voice."  
"Thanks, chica." He grinned. Suddenly, he brightened. "Oh my god. Kyn, as soon as you get rid of that damned cough, we're going to a club. All of us. With, of course, a kid friendly place."

"A.. wait, what?" Kyn blinked. "You mean... obtain a club?" He made a whacking motion with his arm.

"Oh, no," Grimm laughed. "A club. It's a place. Dancing people, loud music. It's loads of fun. I mean, I don't know if you'll like it, but we might as well try."

"I believe I have seen such things when a count or countess hosts a party. Or a wedding!" He smiled, nodding. "I am feeling better, if you would like to go now. Unless the Ladies have plans, of course." His wings curled in a bit in hesitation, thinking if and how a 'club' was different than before.

"Yeah, you might be thinking a little differently... The clubs won't be the same as they used to be, I can promise you that. You'll probably get really concerned for your mental health." Grimm chuckled. "Girls, you wanna come?"  
"Sure!" They both nodded. "But I'm putting Lacy in the kids-friendly section of that place. There's always one."  
"We should go later at night. That's when it's the most fun." Grimm said, grinning.

The brunette smiled, pawing at his necklace. "Then what shall we do until night, if it is more opportune?" He looked around at the buildings and people and cars near them with interest and apprehension. It looked like everything you could ever need in your lifetime was here, though that thought was a little staggering to him. He was used to traveling the different cities for certain things not sold in certain parts of the region. It would take days, normally. But here? A few hours, it seemed. Kyn chewed on his lip, trying to fathom that.

Grimm shrugged. "I dunno. We could... Well, is there anything you see that you wanna do? I mean, you're new here."

He stared at the buildings blankly. "I think... I will just explore on my own for a while, if that's alright?" He eyed the rooftops with interest.

"Ah..." Grimm wasn't really sure he wanted Kyn going on his own - look at that, already overprotective - but he figured he could trust him. "You know how to get back here?"

"I'm sure I can find my way back." He nodded, catching the indecision on Grimm's face. "It is on the Northwest side of the city, roughly 3 or 4 miles from the edge. The tree line starts another mile from that, I will use that as a reference."

"Alright, cool." Grimm nodded. "I'll just hang with the girls, then. Catch up. Don't let anything freak you out too much."

Kyn nodded eagerly, waving as he ran off into the crowd to investigate the purpose of some buildings he saw earlier and pick out good observation posts. The crowd of people was one he wasn't used to, but he had been to the arena once to supply healing balms to fighters, so it was roughly familiar. He'd stick to the more empty alleys, though, as simply being around the cars made his stomach roll. When no one was looking, he'd fly up to the tops of buildings and look around that way to make a mental map, bird's eye view.

_****__****__****__****__**[Timeskip**__****__****__**]**_

Grimm and the girls waited patiently for him to get back, which took about two or three hours. It was dark by then, considering he'd woken up late in the afternoon. When he got back, Grimm jumped up. "Okay. We're going. But you're wearing different clothes. Because night clubs are... Well, you'll see. You can borrow some of mine."

The brunette tilted his head. "A club requires formal wear?" He asked, looking down at the clothes Grimm had purchased for him when he picked Kyn up on the first day.

Rin laughed, snorting a bit. Grimm spoke, "Well, sort of. If you wear what you're wearing, you'll probably get some weird looks. It's too plain."

"If you say it is so." He shrugged.

Grimm nodded, telling the girls he'd be right back. He took Kyn back into the room, dragging him to the closet. "Okay, it can't be anything overdressed. Like me. This wouldn't look good on you." He gestured to himself. He searched through the closet, then pulled out a pair of red skinny jeans. But they weren't too tight and they weren't too loose. Then he pulled out a different black Marilyn Manson T-shirt he had, throwing them to Kyn. "It'll probably be a little uncomfortable for you, considering you're not used to it. But I don't want you getting dirty looks."

"Is it because of class?" Kyn asked, pulling the new clothes on. He frowned at the restriction of the skinny jeans, tugging fruitlessly at the ankles because of the unfamiliar tight sensation.

Grimm winced at the frown he gave the clothing. "Sorry about that... I know, they're uncomfortable the first time. Sorry." He shrugged. "And class? Maybe. I don't know. People are weird."

He finally stood up, done fidgeting. He rather liked the shirt, though. It felt nice, though the material was a bit rougher than he was used to. "Thank you for letting me borrow these and letting me stay here... I just wish there was something I could do for you in return." He sighed dejectedly.

Grimm rolled his eyes, walking over and patting the sides of Kyn's face. "You don't need to do anything. Seriously, bro, you're doing enough just by being my, uh, friend." He said a bit awkwardly.

Kynareth blinked a few times. "Are you sure? It seems that all I have done was encroach upon your living space and, even worse, I have brought Umbracano's attention to you. If you are around when he comes back, he will most certainly kill you. Perhaps it is safer for you, and for Ladies Rin and Lacy, if I were to go? There must be a haven somewhere... perhaps Anga, if it still stands?"

"I don't know what Anga is, but you're not leaving." Grimm shook his head. "That guy's not gonna kill me. Or you. Trust me, I know something he doesn't." He looked down, muttering the last part.

Kyn made a pained little noise, but nodded. "If it is what you insist, but I will allow no unnecessary life endangerment on my part." He said firmly, hands on his hips. "If he does manage to kill me, you have to stop him before he raises the Ayleid army. If he succeeds, then surely all will be doomed."

"I'll stop him. But I swear to god, he's not gonna kill you." Grimm set a hand on his shoulder, looking him straight in the eye.  
"I'll never let that happen, okay?"

Kyn held his gaze for a moment before finally saying. "Okay." He gave a little nod. "Okay." He squashed the urge to hug the man, because frankly, he seemed uncomfortable with physical contact. He settled for just a thankful smile instead.

Grimm stared at Kyn for a moment before taking a deep breath and pulling him in for a hug. It wasn't awkward feeling at all for him, surprisingly. "Thanks."

He was surprised, to say the least, that he was the one on the receiving end of a hug. Not to be the one to look a gift horse in the mouth (I cannot believe I just used that phrase), he wrapped his own arms around the other man's midsection in a tight squeeze.

Grimm turned his head a little bit on his shoulder, resting it there. After one more tight squeeze, he pulled away, hands still on Kyn's shoulders. He pursed his lips. "That... felt weird." He said. "... But good."

Kyn smiled up at him, feeling a little lighter in mood. "It seems as if you do not get such contact often. It was almost a necessity where I lived, so it might do us both some good if we are in contact more often?" Sure, he was a little oblivious to how sexual that sounded, but it was an honest proposal at least.

Grimm felt his face flush just the slightest bit, but he nodded. "Yeah. I guess." He said. "So, let's get going." He pulled away, then leaned back and slid his fingers through Kyn's hair once. Just to fix it a little. It ruffled, and he grinned. "That's better." He dragged the other man with him and through the window, seeing Rin and Lacy standing outside.  
"Oh, hey, you're still wearing those combat boots I gave you..." Grimm grinned.  
"Sure as hell am. They actually fit me now!" She beamed. "Wow, Kyn, you look awesome," she purred, winking.

Kyn beamed, curling his wings a little tighter around his waist where they were tucked underneath his shirt. "Thank you! It was Grimm that picked everything out. I would have been lost as to what was required." He chuckled, fiddling with the silver chain.

"Yeah, Grimm's got good taste." She smirked. "I'm surprised he didn't put any eyeliner on you or anything, though."  
"Hey, I'm not gonna make the guy wear anything else he doesn't wanna wear." Grimm lied. He just really didn't wanna be that close to Kyn's face, or else he'd end up kissing him. "Alright, let's go." He and the rest began walking, and it took about a half an hour to get to the club walking. When they showed up, the guard at the front stopped them.  
"Dude, it's me. Grimm." Grimm deadpanned. The guard smiled. "Ah, Grimm! Well, go right ahead in. You and your friends."  
Grimm smiled back, leading them in. They took Lacy to a place she could be safe with other kids, and then went down a few flights of stairs in the building they were in. The club was held in the lower floors of the building, no windows so no light could get in. The only lights were the flashing colored ones. Music blared, people were filling the room and dancing and screaming, all of which were in dark clothes. There were a few very concerning people, but no biggie.

"Ah, I now see what you meant when you say it changed." He had heard the music a block and a half away, but here in the building, it was near deafening. Unconsciously, he gripped Grimm's arm as the man led them in. It looked like nothing he had seen before and was more packed than even the arena. The style of dance was also something he was widely unfamiliar with. He sent a quick prayer up to the Divines to help him get into this night and followed Grimm and Rin into the crowd.

Rin was smiling largely, and before they could stop her, she was running off to some guy on the other side of the room. Grimm, being left alone with Kyn, shook his head. "So, whaddya think? Scary, right?" he chuckled.

Kyn smiled shakily up at him. "You could say that, I suppose." Completely ignoring the fact he was holding onto the man for all he was worth and eying everyone with caution. "It is always like this?"

"Yup. Every night. I go here every time I come back to this city." He grinned, noticing how tightly Kyn was holding onto him. He set his other hand on Kyn's. "Dude, you're fine. Loosen up a bit." He yelled over the music.

The brunette took a breath, trying to get a rein over his emotions. If not, he might end up accidentally calling a tree to grow in the middle of the room and ruining one of Grimm's favourite places was not something he intended on doing. The city itself made him feel disconnected with everything around him. What plants were around them felt sick, or poisoned. Maybe that was the reason for his illness. He sighed, untensing his muscles. "Right... sorry."

Grimm kept his hand over Kyn's, not really realizing it. When he saw the bar, however, he grinned. "Want something to drink?"

"What are they serving?" Kyn looked up with interest. Drinks couldn't have changed too drastically, he's seen the same few things for all of his nearly 22 years and in 700... well, thinking about it, it was probably a lot different. He'd give it a chance, though.

"Well, hang on." He took the man over to the counter. "Joey!" He called over the music. The man behind the counter turned around, grinning when he saw Grimm. Grimm leaned in, asking him if he could give them two of hos special drink. Joey nodded and winked, reached under the counter, fiddled around with stuff under there for a moment, then came back up with two glasses with a blue liquid in them. Grimm handed one to Kyn. "Don't sip. Just gulp it down." Grimm began his, taking large glugs. He could almost immediately feel the affects taking place, feeling a little light on his feet.

He eyed the liquid with interest. To his knowledge, drinks were not blue. Potions were. So, unless this was about to turn him invisible or something, which it probably wasn't as Grimm looked pretty visible to him, it had changed a lot. Still, he followed the man's instructions and downed the glass, taken aback by the odd taste. He ran his tongue over his lips a few times, cradling the empty glass. "That was... interesting." Already, he was starting to feel a little off. Much stronger than the wine that was always available at the shrine.

Grimm gave an odd laugh, "It's an interesting drink." He leaned on the counter, steadying himself. "Soooo, howdya feel?"

"Slightly off balance?" He set the glass down and rubbed at his arm. Yeah, that was a good enough description. "Why does that taste so..." He made a tumbling motion with his hands, frowning.

Grimm shrugged. "I dunno. It's a weird taste. But there's a lot of stuff in it!" he cackled, resting his forehead on his arm. He grinned, placing his hand on Kyn's. "Hey, wanna dance?" he bit his lip hopefully.

Kyn looked around at the other people 'dancing'. "I am not very sure what is considered dancing anymore so, if you are willing to teach me, then I would love to." He grinned, flipping his hand to actually hold Grimm's.

Grimm nodded, yanking Kyn up with him. Some song he didn't know the name of was playing, but it had a good beat. "Okay," Grimm was feeling so light-headed he couldn't bring himself to care what the fuck he was doing anymore, "All you really do, is you do just like the people around us are doing. Move your hips, and we do it really close to each other." He placed his hands on Kyn's hips, pulling him forward a little bit. He swayed his own hips, grinning, feeling a little flushed.

Kyn flushed brightly, but it was hardly noticeable in the flashing of the lights. He sashayed his hips to the beat and the motion of Grimm's body pressed almost right against him. It did feel a little awkward at first, as the style of music was completely different from what Grimm had played for them earlier. He couldn't even begin to describe what it was, but it actually sounded... invigorating. If he were anymore sober then maybe he would back out and apologize and make his way outside, but for now he let himself slide a little closer and sway to the unfamiliar beat.

Grimm brought his hands up the sides of Kyn's arms, eventually holding them over his head for a moment. He was happier than ever, and nothing seemed to even /matter/ at that moment. His hands fell back down, brushing over Kyn's shoulders. He knelt down just a tad for a moment, then shot back up, his lips very close to Kyn's ear as he moved his hips against the other man's.

The man shivered, arching up to the sensation. One of his hands circled around Grimm's waist, almost as if to steady himself and ending up making their hips grind together.

Grimm smiled a little when their hips met, feeling Kyn's hands on his waist. He placed a feather-light kiss to the bottom of Kyn's ear, ghosting his lips over the other man's jawline and coming to a rest when their noses touched. His eyes were half-lidded and /damn/ him if he'd never seen anything anything hotter than Kynareth looked at that moment.

Kynareth took the step foreword and pressed their lips together as the song neared it's ending and slowed in beat, becoming softer. He blinked, shocked at his own action and backed off. "I am sorry, that is probably not what you... were heading towards. I, uh..." he ruffled his hair, looking totally flushed. Another song picked up in a fast pace.

Grimm stared at Kyn, eyes a bit wider than before. His mouth was a little open, surprised. But because he was drunk off his ass, he ended up reaching forward and grabbing Kyn's shirt, yanking him over and crushing his lips to the other man's.

Just when Kynareth's train of thought was going something along the lines of "Oh Gods, I screwed up and now I'm going to have to leave after all.", he was suddenly pulled foreword into another kiss. He was a little more hesitant this time, but wrapped both his hands around the man's waist, pushing himself onto his toes to put himself at a more even height.

Grimm loosened his hold on Kyn's shirt, resting his hand on the shorter man's chest. It traveled to his shoulder, then his whole arm was around Kyn's neck, the other hand resting on his lower back. They were still swaying a little, bodies pressed closely together. Their hips, mostly. And lips.

Kyn dropped back flat on his feet to bury his head into Grimm's chest. Part of him felt sick because he wasn't supposed to like it, that it was against his vow and any moment Akatosh himself would bust in to strike him down. He was also amused at the image of Grimm waving his book at said God and telling him to fuck off. He snorted to himself, hugging him a little closer.

Grimm, though still being way drunk, was conscious enough to know what was going on. He slung his arms over Kyn's shoulders, pressing his face into his hair. His fingers tapped Kyn's back, softly following the beat of the song. He shouldn't be doing this, though. He can't. It wouldn't turn out well. Kyn would leave him, or Grimm would screw up and make Kyn hate him, either way, someone got hurt. But none of these things registered in his mind as he swayed with Kyn.  
"What's so funny?" Grimm smiled into his hair.

He shook his head, smiling faintly. "Nothing." He laced his fingers together behind Grimm's back. "I was just- are you feeling alright?" Usually, the man was a little standoffish. The change in attitude so suddenly was something that made him smile, but what bothered him was the fact that it was probably because of the drink earlier. That made him sigh a little to himself, watching the odd, pulsing lights around them.

Grimm stared at the floor. "I'm drunk." He deadpanned. "Very drunk. But don't... Don't think that this doesn't mean anything to me. It might take me a minute to remember everything in the morning, but I know I'm not going to regret it." He smiled a little. "Be happy, I'm not usually like this. It's gonna take some getting used to." He chuckled. He may not exactly /regret/ it in the morning, but he'll probably think of all the reasons why it shouldn't happen.

A song by Imagine Dragons (not that Kyn would know) came on and the dancefloor suddenly seemed much more lively than before. "I just do not understand." He huffed out a laugh. "Why you would find appeal in a man from 700 years in the past being actively hunted down by one of the most dangerous men alive." He blew his bangs out of his face. "It puzzles me."

"I've got a thing for 700-year-olds being stalked by dangerous men." Grimm purred jokingly, humming along to the song. He bit his tongue. "Thanks for coming with us tonight."

Kyn raised an eyebrow. "I suppose you must." He smiled a little. "But it is I who should be thanking you for taking me. I would have never have known to come to a place like this and this probably would not have transpired."

Grimm rolled his eyes. "I know. But I'm just saying, thanks for giving it a chance." He rested his cheek on top of Kyn's head. The song by Imagine Dragons finished, suddenly playing "Dirty Little Secret" by the All American Rejects.  
"I'll keep you my dirty little secret..." Grimm sang softly along with the lyrics.

Kyn hooked his thumbs in Grimm's back pockets and closed his eyes, shutting out the actual song and just listening to his voice. He had the voice of a bard, no doubt, as well as the cunning and stealth of an assassin and power of a mage. What an odd combination, he hummed to himself.

"Tell me all that you've thrown away," Grimm sang. "Find out games you don't wanna play. You are the only one that needs to know... I'll keep you my dirty little secret. Don't tell anyone or you'll be just another regret. I hope that you can keep it, my dirty little secret..." he closed his eyes, too, sifting his fingers through Kyn's hair. "Who has to know..." He smiled a little. Kyn. His Kynareth. He liked that.

Kyn tilted his head back, resting his chin on Grimm's collar while the man's slender fingers tugged at his hair. "This is how you court all you favor?" He grinned, rocking his hips to the tune of Grimm's song.

shrugged, sliding his hand on Kynareth's neck.

"You simply do not mix with the society around you?" He tilted his head in question. "Or the idea just does not appeal to you?"

"Maybe... Both?" Grimm furrowed his brow, hardly able to think straight with the alcohol and music and Kyn pressed against him. "The idea itself never really occurred to me. I gave up after my first boyfriend." He grimaced. "But... Somehow you're different."

Kyn giggled, cheeks flushed from their proximity and the alcohol. "I thank you. And I hope I will not disappoint you." He gave an apologetic smile. "I have been told that I tend to do that."

Grimm frowned. "Well, I'm sure you won't. It's not like I haven't disappointed most people." He shrugged. "I... I'll try not to, this time. Harder, I mean. I'll try harder." He frowned again.

"Then we both shall." Kyn leaned up to kiss his jaw then looked around. "I believe we have lost track of Lady Rin." He looked concerned, eyeing the mass of bodies around them.

Grimm opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, he felt two hands cover his eyes. "Boo!" someone giggled. The hands were removed, and suddenly Rin was standing next to them, stumbling a little. She had a bottle of something in her hand. "You guys! Save me! There's some girl hitting on me... I dunno where she went." She slurred.

"You are in danger?" Kyn frowned, looking around. There was no one exactly barreling at them with a knife, per se, but these days, who really knew?

"In danger of being in a lesbian relationship!" she whined.  
"Another girl is attracted to her, ah, sexually." Grimm explained to Kyn.  
"Yeah!" Rin groaned. She turned around in a circle while screaming, "WHEREVER YOU ARE, I'M AS STRAIGHT AS A LINE AND I DON'T WANT YOUR BOOBIES!"

Kyn went over to put a hand on her shoulder to quiet her down. "Perhaps it is time we go back before Lady Rin finds herself confronted by a woman with wishes to bed her, yes?" He steered her away from the crowd she was yelling towards.

Rin giggled, then, as she was passing a random guy, she gasped. "Hey! You're hot!" she reached over and licked the side of his face, and he gave her almost no reaction. Grimm raised his eyebrows, feeling a little dizzy himself. "Yeah, let's... Go home." He nodded.

Kyn blinked, nodding slowly. The two picked up Lacy and half supported, half carried Rin back to the street they were on. "She will be alright in there? Or should we make other accommodations?"

Lacy shook her head. "I'll take care of her, don't worry." She smiled. "She'll pass out as soon as we lay her down. She'll be horrible in the morning, though." She shook her head. They brought her to the tent, and Lacy made a larger opening in it to get Rin through. There were blankets laid out. "Thank you."

Kyn nodded to her. "I see that you have experience with situations like this? Is there anything I may do to help?"

Lacy shrugged. "I've learned to take care of her. I'm also smarter than I look - high I.Q. - and Rin is... messed up. A lot of stuff happened to her. Mostly in her love life." Lacy looked down. "I don't need any help, but thanks. We'll see you guys tomorrow?"

Kyn looked over at her sadly, but he shrugged. "I do not know." He looked over at Grimm. "I do not see why not. You will call us if you need our assistance?"

Lacy nodded. "'Night."  
Grimm and Kyn went inside the room, Grimm stumbling a bit as he landed. He immediately threw his shirt to the ground and kicked off his skinny jeans and shoes, plopping down on the bed. He waved an arm, gesturing for Kyn to join him.

Kyn stripped off the restricting pants and the shirt, crawling under the blankets next to him and hugging his arm. "I do not think I will be ever be able to get used to how comfortable this bed is." He smiled, wiggling.

"I'm magic like that," Grimm murmured, moving a little closer to push his head on Kyn's chest. "Remember- I'll probably be really... Weird about this in the morning. But I'll come around. I promise." He closed his eyes.

"Even if you do not wish to keep this relationship with me, thank you for that lovely dance." He mumbled and closed his eyes too.

_****__****__****__****__**[Timeskip**__****__****__**]**_

Grimm didn't have the energy to reply, so he decided to let Kyn's steady breathing lull him to sleep.  
When he awoke, his head hurt and his eyes burned and he felt sick to his stomach. Definitely a hangover. He simply moved closer to Kyn and- wait, Kyn?  
Grimm looked up, his chin resting on the other man's chest. Kynareth was still asleep. He raised an eyebrow, wondering why he was /cuddling/ with him. He tried to recall the events of the night, but he couldn't for quite some time. It was after a while that he finally remembered everything, a soft smile forming on his face.

Kyn let out a little sigh in his sleep, turning his head and burying it into the pillow. He opened an eye and hummed at the sun on his skin. One of his hands sleepily ran through Grimm's hair and he curled up closer to the heat of his body.

Grimm let out a sigh of his own, smiling as Kyn ran a hand through his hair. He brushed his fingers over Kyn's arm. "Kyn?" He spoke softly.

The brunette mumbled, cracking an eye open. "Yeah?" He asked, looked over at him. "Oh, right, I am sorry." He sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "I should probably explain-" he began sheepishly.

Grimm didn't sit up - it would only hurt his head more - but he stared at Kyn, an amused grin on his face. "Don't." He held up a hand. "I know what happened. I'm fine with it..." he paused, frowning. "I think. Shit, this is what I was afraid of! My mind's just going to run through all the scenarios of how this could end badly. Most of which end badly because of something /I/ did."

"Many things could happen," Kynareth slid back into the pillows, "But that does not mean they will." He pursed his lips, but looked a little relieved. "I suppose all we can do is try."

Grimm stared at Kynareth, a bit of a lost expression on his face. "I don't want to hurt you, though." He said softly, his voice cracking a little.

"I find the possibility of that happening to be very slim." Kyn smiled softly, leaning over to kiss his forehead. "How do you feel?"

Grimm pressed his face into Kyn's chest, closing his eyes. He sighed. "My head hurts. Not that bad, though. I'm used to that stuff we drank last night. And you?"

"About the same." He admitted. "There is a throbbing in my head, and my stomach is turning a bit, but it will go away." His small hands ran through Grimm's unnaturally coloured hair.

"Mmm..." Grimm leaned into the touch. "In a couple hours it'll pass."  
"Grimm," Lacy came through the window, looking tired. She was still rubbing her eyes with sleep. "Do you have any pain killers?"  
Grimm pointed to the desk in the corner. "There's some asprin and ibuprofen in there." He said.

"Good morning Ms. Lacy!" Kyn called from the bed. "How are you and Rin this morning? She is not suffering too much from last night's festivities I was your own night?"

"Rin's... Being grumpy. If I was older I'd use more descriptive words." She yawned. "She was kicking me all night, though. Restless from the alcohol." Lacy rolled her eyes. "Next time you guys do that, I'm sleeping with you." She searched the drawer for asprin.

Kyn chuckled to himself. "If that is what you desire." He looked down at Grimm, who was practically on his lap. "Perhaps we should dress?"

Grimm nodded as Lacy exited the room with the aspirin. "Yeah, we probably should." He was reluctant to disentangle himself from Kyn, but he did it anyway. "You're warm though." He smirked.

Kyn flushed, pulling his legs up to his chest and pushing the blankets off. "I will wait here then." He said, stretching his wings and curling them around him.

Grimm smiled at the blush, then it grew at the sight of his wings. They were looking a little better.  
He went into his closet, putting on a tight fitting black shirt, a leather jacket, and black pants that were not skinny jeans, but loose around his legs with buckles on the sides of them going down his legs. He wore his usual combat boots underneath them.  
"It feels nice to take a break from skinny jeans once in a while." He sighed, stepping out.

"It looks nice." Kyn smiled, scooting off the bed to stretch the rest of his body. He picked up his old clothes from where they were folded up and slipped on the pants. The shirt still had some dirt on it, so he figured he'd run it down to the stream later.

Grimm smiled. "Thanks. Um, if you wanna borrow a shirt you can." He reached in and pulled out a plan red one. "I've got colors other than black in here."

Kyn just shrugged. "Whatever suits you." He brushed off his pants and yawned, pacing a little around the room.

"Well, here, put it on, I guess." He tossed the shirt to him. Going over to the drawer, he pulled out a pill bottle. "Want some ibuprofen? It'll help with the headache."

Kyn tugged the shirt on, just plain white, and trotted over to him. "What is it?" He peered over at the bottle in curiousity.

"Pills." Grimm shook the bottle. "You swallow them down with water or something. It's medicine. Pain killers." He opened the bottle and took one white pill out. Getting water, he swallowed it down. "Want one?"

He nodded, accepting the little white pill. He took the water after him and swallowed it down, grimacing a little. "You take one of these everytime you get a headache?" He rubbed at his temple.

"Not /every/ time. That's not good for your liver." He chuckled. "Only when it's really bad. But I haven't had to take one in a while, so... It's fine." Grimm shrugged. He stared at Kyn for a moment, still apprehensive. Shaking his head, he chuckled. "Sorry."

The brunette blinked, confused, but shrugged. "Should we perhaps check on Lady Rin?" He asked. He was planning to check by the shrine later, just to see what was left, as he hadn't focused on looking in the first place.

Grimm nodded. "Yeah..." he and Kyn hopped up through the window, then rounded the corner. "Rin? Are you-"  
"Ah!" Rin groaned from inside the tent. "Don't talk so loud!"

"Or perhaps not." Kyn laughed softly at Rin's groan.

Grimm rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't have drank so much at the club, huh?"  
"Shut /up/!" Rin groaned again.

"Should we leave you to sleep?" Kyn asked, lowering his voice so she could still hear him, but wouldn't upset her headache. "There's something I've been meaning to check on, I can come back later if you like?"

"Uhn... Go away..." she muttered. Grimm chuckled.  
"Can I come with?" he asked him.

"I do not mind." He smiled and nodded, turning on his heel. "I was just going back to the shrine is all."

"Well, I got nothin' else to do." He grinned. "Let's go, then." He shoved his hands in his pockets, striding off with Kyn. "Take care of Rin!" he called back.

When they arrived, the sight confirmed his suspicions. The living area was practically falling apart, though not as much as the chapel itself. A tree on the left side of the quarters was growing in the wall itself, the vines spreading out to cover almost half if it. The roof caved in on the right, leaving the building a gaping entrance. The only part of the chapel still standing was the far wall, behind the alter where he had been chained to. He shuffled on his feet, managing a laugh. "It is a mess."

Grimm ran a hand across the stone. "It is..." he sighed. "Kind of a beautiful mess, though. I find a lot of ancient things to be beautiful. And neat." He tilted his head to the side. "Are you okay?"

He nodded, looking down. "Yes, I am fine." He wandered over to the chapel, nearly tripping over one of the fallen statues at the entrance. The stone shrine by the wall was still fine, and the rusted shakles were still wrapped around it, part of it laying one the forest grown were the floor had been overgrown. He tapped the stone surface a little, fingers brushing left behind threads of the original embroidery. "Lady Kyne said she kept something here. For emergencies." He frowned, leaning on the stone.

Grimm cocked his head. "Do you think it's still imprtant?" His hand unconsciously went to his book out of habit.

"Who knows. There is nothing here anyway." Kyn sighed folded his fingers underneath his chin, licking his lips, brow furrowed. The two cylindrical stone tables still had wax on them from the numerous candles from the last holiday that had been celebrated here. Kyn turned and walked out, over to the living quarters, entering through where the door had been ripped off. It was laying on the ground a few feet away, burn marks on it. Looking around, he saw it was the dining hall that collapsed, the rooms still looked fine. Barely touched, excepted for the numerous plants ingrown. He hadn't seen the place before they pulled him into the shrine.

Grimm's eyes wandered around the strange place curiously. "This place is so cool..." he mused. "It must have been a lot prettier when it was still... Intact."

Kyn nodded. "It was very beautiful. The girls liked to decorate often. They would string up flowers and tapestries on the wall according to the season or celebration." He pointed to a few discolored spots on the walls that still stood.

Grimm smiled. "You sound like you had some good friends. More than I ever had." His smile turned into a rather weak one. "You're lucky you had that."

"Friends?" Kyn sounded skeptical. "No, we were workers. Friendships, like lovers, were forbidden. It was seen as a hindrance to our duties. We had frequent guests, I suppose. The women ran the place, I was more like a servant, staying behind the scenes." He shrugged and looked over at Grimm. "You did not have someone close to you as a child?"

"Oh, sorry..." He grimaced. "Aside from my parents, no. And my parents weren't even that close with me. My mom was a little more than my dad, but... That's why I'm not good with people. I've never really had someone."

Kyn walked over and hugged his arm. "You told me your mother was dead, but you never talked about your father." He said softly, hesitantly. "Whatever happened to him?"

"He..." Grimm furrowed his brow. "What... What /did/ happen to him? Honestly, I have no idea. I think he just... Disappeared on us one day. I can't really remember..." he stared at the ground, brow still furrowed. Images flashed into his mind of his father. It was late, and he was standing over him, a soft but worried smile on his face. They suddenly stopped. "I- I don't know." He shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut.

"They were kind to you, at least?" Kyn tilted his head, fingers tracing over the material of the jacket sympathetically. "It is- I apologize if I am prying."

"It was hard." Grimm confirmed. "But I'm a good person because of it. It's what makes me /me/, and I like me. A little." He chuckled.

"At least, in that respect, I am glad you turned out how you did." The brunette smiled a little, slipping off to a small closet-like room with remnants of blankets sprawled around on the ground and almost completely rotted books stacked off toward the side. He poked around a little, coming up with a small chained up wooden box with a grin. He tucked it under his arm and cast a glance at the books, deciding they were too damaged to take. Kyn walked back out into the main hall, looking a little nervous. "You do not have to keep me with you. I could stay here, perhaps attempt to repair the damage left by time?"

Grimm frowned, cocking his head. "But I like having you with me." He paused. "Do /you/ not like staying with me? Because if you don't, you can stay here if you want. I don't have any control over what you do." He looked at his feet, shuffling them.

Kyn looked up, a little alarmed. "No, I... I just do not want you to feel like you are obliged to me. You do not have to lend me your home if you do not feel comfortable with me being around."

"Oh... Well, no, I want you around." Grimm offered a crooked smile- his basic signature smile. "I really do. I'd like it if you'd stay."

"Then I shall stay." Kyn nodded with a smile. "Now, is there any- oh! The armor!" He jumped, rushing over to the dining area. He pushed a few stones out of the way, trying to shove stuff off the hidden wooden panel in the floor. He propped it up, vanishing into a narrow tunnel under the floor.

Grimm cocked his head, looking down the narrow passageway. "Jeez, this place is intense..." he muttered, stepping into the tunnel. "What armor?" He called as he walked down.

"A sacred relic we were intrusted with us a long time ago. It's from a warrior made Saint, according to the myths." The narrow stone corridor widened, revealing a huge stone door with carved pictures and worn paint on it.

Grimm smiled. "I seriously can't even begin to describe how amazing this place is..."

Kyn gave him a sly grin. "You should've seen Sacre Tor." He traced a looping pattern across an empty slab in the center with his thumb and a loud click was heard, then the door swung open. Inside looked untouched by the passage of time, aside from slightly worn pillars and faded images on the walls. White and red armor was draped on a dummy against the far wall, accompanied by a sword and shield, neither of which rusted at all, nor colours had faded. "At least it is still here." He sighed in relief. The room was lit by crystals poking in through the ceiling and two corridors branched out on both sides of them.

"So what's the importance of the armor?" Grimm asked.

"It is just something we have to keep safe, as it was used in battle by a great warrior whom defeated the beast, Umaril. I do not think it holds any other significance." He shrugged.

"That's really cool," Grimm nodded. He looked around, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. "Can we... Go back up? I don't do well with places like this. The tunnel feels sorta small, and... I'm a bit claustrophobic." He admitted, feeling a little sick to his stomach. "Or I can go back up and you can stay down here for a while if there's more you want to look at, that's fine."

"Ah, yes of course." Kyn led him out, back to the living quarters. He kept the small wooden box tucked tight to his chest the whole time. "Is there anything else before we leave?"

Grimm shook his head. "Don't think so. But what's that box?"

"Stuff." He grinned. "I will show you when we get back."

"Alrighty then," Grimm shrugged. "So are we heading back now?"

"I suppose yes." Kynareth glanced over at the city skyline, wondering what would've happened if they had kept expanding the city and they had found him before he woke up. An interestingly terrifying thought. He bit his lip and followed Grimm down.

Grimm scratched his arm - the weapon - and smiled. "You know, I remember my parents telling me about things like this. Only a little bit, though. I remember them telling me things that you've mentioned. I thought they were fake stories, though, when I was little. Then as I grew up I realized they were probably real, and then I just kind of altogether forgot about them. But it's starting to come back."

Kyn perked up a little. "The stories have become legends since then? All knowledge of legends from my time must now be lost." He clasped his hands behind his back. "I used to tell tales to the young children that visited when the girls were busy. They liked the song about the Lady of Shallot, though I cannot fathom why." He chuckled. "It was a nice change from just sitting back doing more menial chores."

"I could imagine so." Grimm nodded. "But yeah, they should all be legends by now. Cool legends, but still legends. That kinda sucks, to be honest. I wonder if this time will ever become a legend." He gestured to the air.

"From what I've seen, such legends have been made to myth and the Gods have been forgotten." Kyn said a little sadly. "What they do not know is that dragons once existed, only they mostly lived up in the North in Skyrim. Unicorns were very real, only there were not many in existence because the followers of Hiracine hunted them to gain his favor. Magic was very widely practiced, as well as necromancy. There were many other creatures that used to lurk in the wilds; Will-o-th-whisps, ogres, trolls, minotaurs, imps to name a few. I wonder how many still roam?" He furrowed his brow and looked around as if expecting to see one.

Grimm beamed. "I've seen Will-o-the-whisps." He nodded. "It was in some other forest in a bit of a rural area, and they led me to Rin and Lacy. They were near death, I can remember that much. That was only a few years ago, so I don't see any reason why they wouldn't still be around."

"A friendly Will-o-the-wisp? Almost unheard of." He looked shocked. "But there have been a few stories. What discouraged many explorers are the possibility of coming across a Wraith. Absolutely ghastly creatures, only defeated by magic or pure silver weapons. They were created from the spirits of tormented souls that were cursed to remain in a certain place. When they shriek, it feels as if your very ears have been stabbed. What is worse is that if they catch you off guard, the can Silence your magic and freeze you to death. Absolutely horrible. And their faces..." He shuddered.

"That doesn't sound so nice..." Grimm cringed. "But referring to the Will-o-the-wisps, I've always heard legends about how there were the bad ones, and the rare good ones that led you to something that was going to be really important to my life. So far, Rin and I have saved each other's lives on many occasions. I guess I'm lucky I ran into the good ones." He grinned.

"Then this is indeed a good thing!" Kyn agreed enthusiastically. "I have not been lucky enough to see such phenomenons, but it is nice to see one who has." He rocked on the heels of his feet at the edge of the hill that dipped into the more populated area. "What do you think of heights?" He asked as nonchalantly as a man with the fascinated mentality of a five year old could.

Grimm blinked. "I've never really had a problem with them. Why?"

"I could fly us down?" He shrugged. "It is faster than walking and the city is gorgeous from above. I mean, if you are okay with it." He rambled about how he could carry another person and he had done it before, but they were both focused on Grimm's bleeding leg, and that his wings could use the usage and he caught himself after a minute, blinking when he realized he just fell into a tangent and shut himself up so Grimm could answer.

Grimm smiled. "Dude, yes. Fly me like a pro." He grinned, then paused. "Forget I just said that. But yes."

Kyn offered his arms out to carry Grimm bridal style, as it was the easiest way. Once he had a secure hold on the other man, he took off into the sky, heading toward their building but the speed was casual so the man could get a good view.

Smiling like an idiot by now, Grimm craned his neck so he could see in different directions. He held onto Kyn's shirt and absently brushed his thumb over the other man's chest. "Holy shit..." He breathed, still grinning. "And you get to fly like this whenever you want? Boy, what I would give..."

"Not always." He chuckled a little. "Only when I had to get somewhere quickly. Like when Kvatch was... overrun. I had usually walked, as it was an opportune time to gather ingredients on the way to my current destination." He banked a little to the left, keeping above buildings and out of the street view.

Grimm nodded. "Oh, okay." His eyes scanned the city, and after another few minutes, his stomach rolled. "Oh, good, thank god we're close to the building... I guess I get a little more airsick than I thought." He said, embarrassed.

Kyn straightened himself when they got closer to the ground and beat his wings a few time for a more gentler descent. "I apologize for that." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Perhaps that height was not opportune for one who does not fly frequently."

Grimm stumbled a bit, but caught himself. He held up a finger. "It's okay... I'm good." He grinned. "That was fun, though. I really liked it. Maybe I could get used to it." He laughed.

The brunette shrugged but ducked his head to hide the little grin on his face. "Lady Kyne did not like it when I let the children fly. She would say," he put his hands on his hips and mimicked her voice. "'Kynareth, you leave them be and get back to the priory to scrub the floors right this instant or I will rip those pretty little wings off yours right off and pin them above the mantel!'" He wagged his finger and made a shooing motion, before dropping his arms to his sides and chuckling a little dryly.

Grimm bit his lip to keep from busting out giggling - something he rarely did - and snorted instead. "You okay there?" He tilted his head with an eyebrow raised.

"Ah, yes. I am almost certain she would not have actually done it." He thought for a moment. "Unless she had found reason to see me executed. There is always that." He chuckled to himself again.

"Nah, you're too cute to be executed." Grimm waved a hand, then furrowed his brow. "Did I really just say that?"

"You did." Kynareth confirmed, pink flooding his cheeks as he curled his toes against the ground and tried to look anywhere but at Grimm. "And the same for you, I guess. I- do they even do that anymore? I should hope not?"

Grimm laughed. "Executions? Well... When you get arrested, depending on your crime, there's always the death sentence. It's very rare, though. Believe me. I've managed to get away from the police about a billion times."

"Police? Have the Guard renamed themselves? It sounds like Khajiit tongue from Elsweyr. But I have not seen any and they are very noticeable." He frowned. "You have stayed in the prisons, then? They are very unforgiving from what I have seen of them. Pray tell if they have gotten any worse."

"I've never been to prison, no, but I've /almost/ been to prison. I accidentally... Ah... Killed a police officer. Total accident, though." His face took on a guilty expression. "Moved to another city after that."

"A hunting incident?" Kyn cocked his head, lips pursed in sympathy.

"You could say that." Grimm nodded.  
"Yo, douchebag and friend!"  
Grimm sighed, then turned around. "Yo, bitch! Whaddya want?"  
"Tomorrow Lacy and I are gonna go outside of the city to fight," Rin said, jogging up to them. "Wanna come with? Oh, and I'm feeling better, in case you can't tell."

"Training?" Kyn looked up in excitement. "I have only seen the Guard train at Cloud Ruler Temple when I thought I... um, nevermind that. It is a fascinating thing to watch, but not to do. Nor to know what they train for." He folded his wings neatly against his back. "Glad to see you are well, Lady Rin."

"So I take that as a yes?" She put a hand on her hip.  
"Yup," Grimm nodded. He suddenly smiled, looked around to make sure no one was looking, and hissed, "Think fast!" before his arm transformed into a scythe and he was swinging it at Rin, who yelped and ducked just in time.  
"Hey! Pendejo!" She snapped.  
"Really?" Grimm laughed, his arm returning back to normal. "No need for the language, darling. But good job, you've got nice reflexes."

Kyn looked a little nervous, taking a step back. "This is a normal thing between you two?" He asked, just to make sure.

"Yeah, pretty much." Grimm shrugged. "I trained with her a lot when we first met, just to get her back in the game. She fought me with her bending while I used my gun and scythe. And we also helped each other with our- fuck, I've gotta stop bringing that up!" He smacked his forehead. "Never mind."

"Zok zofaas." Kyn muttered to himself, shaking his head. "You mention something like this often. It is something you do not wish for me to know? I will leave you to your privacy." He promised with a nod.

"Yeah, it's... A secret." Grimm's shoulders slumped. Rin cocked her head at him, her eyebrows furrowed and a concerned expression on her face.  
"You okay?" she whispered.  
"I'm fine." He straightened out, looking at Kyn. "So. Anything you wanna do?"

"I have no plans for the rest of the day, no." Kyn shook his head.

"Hmm... I could attempt to teach you how to play the guitar a little?" He smiled. "If you want."

"The instrument you had yesterday morning?" He smiled, perking up some more. "I was not permitted to learn such a practice at the shrine, Lady Kyne said it interfered with my studies."

"Well, do you wanna? Cause it can't really hurt to try."

Kyn nodded in excitement. "Anything you have to teach, I will be willing to learn!"

Grimm beamed. "Well then, come on." He gestured for him to follow him down. "You can come if you want," he said to Rin.  
"No, no, you two go and make beautiful babies."  
"What?"  
"Nothing. That's not even possible."  
"Ignore her." Grimm mumbled to Kyn, hopping down into the room.

Kyn waved to them and followed Grimm down into the room to sit on the bed and wait for him to go get the guitar.

_****__****__****__****__**[Timeskip**__****__****__**]**_

Grimm spent most of the day teaching Kyn how to play the guitar - it was a difficult task - and by the end of the day after running around for a while in stores and explaining to Kyn how a TV worked, they were beat. They ended up collapsing on the bed practically on top of each other, and woke up much the same way; Grimm with his leg thrown over Kyn's waist and his arm over his chest and head on his shoulder.  
"TIME TO WAKE UP, BITCHES!"  
Grimm just groaned at Rin's rude awakening, turning his head a little.

The loud voice made Kyn open his eyes reluctantly and look around, seeing Rin poke her head in through the window. "I assure you, we will be up soon." He told her, nudging Grimm gently.

"Good! Hurry up!" Her head disappeared and they faintly heard her yelling at Lacy to wake up.  
Grimm moaned again, turned over off of Kyn. "But you're so comfy..." he whined.

The brunette flushed. "I assure you that I do not offer as much comfort as the actual mattress, though I do not mind. You may do as you wish."

Grimm opened his eyes and rolled them, then sat up, his hair messed up from sleeping. He shot a look at Kyn - his "It's morning and I'm grumpy" look - and got out of the bed to go get dressed. He walked out of the closet wearing the same thing he'd been wearing when they'd met, complete with his gloves.

Kyn raised his eyebrows and got up, taking whatever clothes were handed to him and putting them on; a light blue shirt and grey sweatpants. Rin banged on the wall again a few times during their morning routine, causing him to jump once or twice at the unexpected noise. "She is always arising early?" He groaned a little weakly.

"She wakes up early when she wants to train, the fucker." He muttered, glaring at the window. "WE'RE COMING, COOL YOUR TITS!" He screamed at it. After they were ready, Grimm barely did anything to his hair, he just made sure it wasn't... bad looking, and they headed outside.  
"Alright, let's get a move on." Rin grinned. Lacy looked sleepy, and she yawned and rubbed her eyes.  
"Rin? Piggy-back ride?" She asked. Rin rolled her eyes and crouched down for her to get on.  
"We're just going to the rural area right next to this place." Rin said, and began walking.  
After about a half hour of walking, they made it outside of the city where there was almost nothing but earth for a good mile.

"You do not bring any equipment?" Kyn asked when they got there, looking around. The land was bare, but peaceful. It was nice to see civilizations had not taken over /_everything_/. In fact, Lost Boy Cavern was supposed to be around here and was rumored to have housed a particularly vicious Wraith. It was probably long gone by now.

"Nope, just our bare skin and bones." Lacy sighed, sliding off of Rin. She stretched, shook her whole body out - as did Rin - and ran a ways away. Rin did the same, both of them standing stock still.  
"Might wanna sit down for this. They take forever." Grimm sighed, sitting in the dirt.  
It was quiet for a moment, then suddenly, Rin's mouth twitched upward into a smile. "Go!" she shouted, and she was stepping forward, her leg in the air as it came crashing back down, sending a mountain of rocks toward Lacy. Lacy slammed her hands down in the air and the earth rose beneath her, sending her flying into the air, only narrowly avoiding the mountain Rin sent towards her. She came back down, the earth seeming to envelope her. She was suddenly gone. Rin noticed and moved her already kicked off shoes to the side, closing her eyes and taking a firm stance.

Kynareth watched them with utmost interest from his seat next to Grimm. The earth shaking and groaning beneath him was an entirely new experience, and he had to moreso disconnect himself from the immediate area during the training match. "Zok brit aan mulaag. Aan grik fus!" He muttered to himself, grinning as the Earth itself seemed to devour Lacy in protection.  
(*"Great beauty and strength! And such power!")

Rin's eyes narrowed as she felt the vibrations of the earth beneath her feet, being able to tell where Lacy was at every move. Earthbenders were capable of this- they could tell where any living being was, even ants, are on the earth just by listening to it and feeling the vibrations. When Lacy suddenly burst from the earth, Rin put up a wall in front of her and Lacy kicked off of it. Rin jumped on top of it, flames shooting from her hands toward Lacy. It went on like this for about two hours, and they both came away with only a few scratches.

"I have never seen such an impressive battle before, even if it was just training. It was very impressive!" Kyn had jumped up and ran over to greet them. "Surely Rin, you are Monahven; the Throat of the World, where Earth meets the Sun, Fire. And Lacy, you are Qethsegol, Bone of the Earth." He grinned, looking like an excited puppy.

Rin and Lacy gave him odd looks, but nonetheless smiled. "Uh, thanks!" Rin chirped, a bit out of breath. "Well, now that that's over with, we're gonna go back and clean and shit..." she shrugged. Lacy followed as they began to walk back, and Grimm stayed lying in the dirt.

Kyn walked back over to Grimm, watching as the girls slowly vanished from sight. "Do you get to watch them often like this?" He quirked his head, still caught up in the session that just occurred.

"When I first met them, yes, I did. It gets boring after a while. The one thing I find really cool about it though, is how an earthbender sees. They can see anything on the earth, feel every vibration, sense every movement. They can even tell if you're lying or not because they can feel your /_body's_/ vibrations."

"It is indeed much stronger than my own sense." Kyn agreed, curling his toes in the dirt. He vehemently refused to wear shoes anywhere. Especially outside. "In fact, it feel like I can feel something now, but I believe it is just a left over feeling from their training."

"You sure?" Grimm asked, sitting up and standing.

"I do not know." He shrugged. "It could just be someone wandering, attracted to the noise. It is human... ish?" He frowned, looking off in a direction. He wandered out a little more, as if to get a stronger sense, but still looked confused.

"Huh," Grimm huffed, "Maybe-"  
"Oh, hey guys!" Rin suddenly called. "I'm not sure, but I can definitely feel something out further away! It doesn't feel right, though! You should probably come back!"

"Just a moment!" Kyn called back, squinting. He stood there for a moment, trying to focus, when a loud snarl made him whirl and a 7 ft creature of muscle and fur shoved Grimm to the ground with a swipe of it's claws. "Werewolf!" He squeaked, confused. He didn't know they could throw their power to a different source. Unless there was another. Regardless, Kyn plucked out a feather and sent the gleaming silver to bury into the beast's shoulder. It snapped in agitation, taking not even two leaps to reach him and shove him to the ground, using it's weight to pin him. The brunette yelped as one of it's claws duck into his wing and the other on his chest.

Grimm stood up, looking fiercely at the werewolf as it pinned Kynareth down. He growled and changed his arm into the scythe, then swatted it at the wolf, causing it to tumble off of Kyn. "What the fuck?!" he panted, looking down at Kyn.

Kyn sent him a grateful look, scrambling to his feet. "I believe there is another nearby." He informed Grimm and the creature charged at the older man, snarling in challenge.

Grimm hissed, and he suddenly felt his teeth sharpen the slightest bit. Oh, well, that's okay. It's not that bad. Yet. "Fucker," he snapped, stabbing at it with the scythe again.

The creature snapped at him, launching itself foreword to slice open Grimm's shoulder with a howl. Kyn had tried to step in and intervene, but the other one came barreling foreword, swiping at his arm and making him draw back. "At least it is two! Werewolves usually hunt in packs." He pulled out a few more of the daggers and held them at an arm's length, trying to talk sense into the attacker. The one focusing on Grimm was a mouse brown while this one was gray. Kyn was trying to see if they were part of a pack when the gray one seemed to get bored of his talking and jumped foreword, knocking the knives out of his hand.

Grimm sneered, an animal-like snarl escaping his throat. He lunged forward and sliced at the creature's back, then jumped back when it went for him again. He ground his teeth together, looking at Kyn. "Is there anything else we should be worried about?"

"They do not seem coherent, which means they have spent too much as a wolf. They will no longer listen." Kyn ducked a rather angry blow directed at his face. "But they can still get offended." He yelped when the two suddenly switched targets; the brown one ripping into his side and the grey one taking a swipe at Grimm's feet.

Kyn could only grunt in agreement as he fought to regain his footing. "I am not wise in battle tactics. Perhaps-" Brown grabbed his wrist -they could still use their thumbs, huh- and he found himself on his stomach. Grey whimpered and looked like it wanted to retreat, but saw it's companion take down Kyn and went after Grimm again. It used one hand to grab the scythe and the other to slash across his stomach. Brown pressed one paw into the small of his back and with the other, grabbed the thick part of his wing bone where it met his back and ripped it down, causing a thick snap and a shriek from Kyn.

"You stay the hell away from him!" Grimm shrieked, his eyes suddenly brimming with tears. His arm transformed into his gun and he shot at the wolves uncontrollably, almost. His vision was going red and he felt his blood pumping at the sight of Kyn's torn wing and that pained look on his face. "Kyn, Kyn are you alright?" he yelled, his voice cracking. Uh-oh, not good.

The wolves gave little grunts as the bullets burrowed into their thick hides, but they wouldn't back down.  
Kyn gave a strangled whimper, eyes fixed shut and barely registering the change in Grimm's voice. "O-Only silver can kill them." He ground out. The werewolf snarled in anger, twisting even further. The shattered bones ground against each other as blood ran from the break.

Grimm's eyes widened and he involuntarily let out another animal-like snarl, his teeth sharpening further. "Don't fucking touch him!" he screamed, his voice suddenly changing again. This time it was high-pitched and scratchy. His arm went back to normal only as he felt his skin bubbling. He suddenly hung his head, standing still except for a few bodily twitches.  
In that next moment, his head lifted, and you could see his eyes were turning yellow and bloodshot, and his lips were curled into a maniacal grin. He let out a chuckle in that high pitched voice, and then that chuckle turned into laughter; psychotic laughter. His head lolled for a second before his skin began turning red and his hair turning black.

Kyn twisted his head around to watch and oh- that explained quite a bit now. He felt the grip on his wing become hesitant and the grey one backed off. They sent a look to eachother, and Brown reached over to grab the unbroken one in warning. Grey sent a warning growl to Grimm, standing in front of the other two.

Grimm continued to cackle, his skin rippling and changing. His hair grew longer and rattier, and his clothes seemed to phase into his skin. He was growing taller and skinnier to the point where it was literally bone-skinny, and he was standing almost as tall as the trees on all fours. His laugh went from being high-pitched to low and demonic, as if thousands of voices were echoing as his own. His face, however, was no longer human, but that of a dog muzzle. It was deformed and disturbing, but still resembled a dog.  
"You," he growled at the wolves. "You will not lay another finger on him!" His claws came down to swipe at the wolves, hitting them and sending them flying. More hysterical laughter left Grimm's mouth, his arms hanging loosely in front of him and his head twisted oddly to the side.

Kyn pushed himself up, wincing as the one wing hung limply from his back. One, the grey, slithered back looking ready to run, but the other stood defiantly, rushing in to attack.

"You really think you can take me on, you pathetic wolf?" Grimm's tongue hung from his mouth, and he reached down to smash his fist into the werewolf. He grinned evilly, then looked at Kyn. "And to think you have feelings for /this!/" He cackled insanely.

Kynareth shook his head, walking a little closer. "It is not your form that bothers me, I will care for you either way. Let us go home and catch up with Lady Rin and Lacy, they must be worried. Leave the wolves be."

Grimm just stared at him, that same sneer on his face. "You care for nothing but a fucking monster. That's all Slender is. That's all he'll ever be. A mutated monster who doesn't even know what /kind/ of beast he is!" He laughed, a claw reaching up to dig into his own shoulder. "And what are you? A guardian who's out dated 700 years! You don't belong here. You should be /dead/, along with Slender." He grinned again, a low growl escaping his throat.

"He is no beast!" Kyn snapped, "You may say he is better off dead, but without him, would you not cease to exist? You are apart of eachother, I see, and therefore I accept you as well." He stood up in front of the demonlike creature, one wing in a defiant flare and the other hanging uselessly by his side. "You may call me what you will, or do what you will, but it will not change my feelings." He tried to tug the massive claw-hand away from his shoulder. "Let us just leave."

The demon snarled and instinctively snapped his hand outward, a claw slicing Kynareth's chest. Not deeply, but enough to hurt. He shook with laughter. "I could kill you. I could kill you right now, and afterwards, when Slender sees what he's done, he would kill himself. I would cease to exist, yes, but I know I do not deserve to exist. And Slender harbors me, therefore he does not deserve life either."

Kyn stared at him silently, hand clutching his bleeding chest. "If you believe you can bear this weight, then do it. I do not belong here anyway." He gave a little half shrug, arms out in defeat. "But all things deserve life, no matter their crime. You have a heart that beats, yes? A mind to think for yourself? You are worthy of life, and that is why you've been given one. Grimm, Slender, whichever... he has that too. You may share be two different entities completely, but you are connected. You have both been given life." He tried to approach again, gently resting his palm on the demon's forearm. "Surely you don't want to waste it?"

The demon stared at Kynareth, lips still pulled back in a snarl.  
"No!" it growled, eyes squeezing shut. It could feel Grimm trying to break through, trying to go back to his original form. "You /cannot make me!/" He let out an unnatural screech, claws digging into the ground.

"Please let him come back? I am sure we will meet again. But he is injured and I need to fix him. Let him back." He clutched a little closer towards the demon, both hands on his chest now. "I will keep both of you alive, so please." He brushed his mostly unharmed wing against the skin of Grimm's forearm.

The demon let out a surprisingly weak sound, like a whimper. It was shrinking, though, thank goodness. Eventually, after many more protesting sounds, red skin returned to normal color, yellow eyes returned to purple, and long black hair returned to short aqua hair. Grimm's clothing was still on him, just a little bit dirty. He was bruised and bleeding, but too weak to do anything about it. He couldn't even hold himself up, so he fell forward into the other man's arms. "K... Kyn?" he whispered.

"I am here." Kynareth smoothed his hair with his fingers, one arm looped around under Grimm's arm to his waist to support him. He brought the man over to one of the still grassy parts of the field to lay him down. "Rest now and I will take care of you." He assured, trying to draw enough power to coax up the appropriate medicine plants to fix him up, at least a little.

Grimm wasn't entirely sure what happened, but he knew it was bad. And he knew he did something bad, too. "Kyn?" he croaked, eyes closing. "I'm sorry..." He tried to move his hand so he could at least make sure that Kyn was actually there, but all he was able to do was lift it off the ground a fraction of an inch.

"Please be still." Kynareth smiled and leaned down close to kiss his cheek. "It is not a problem at all, I assure you." He managed to scrounge up something to at least stop the bleeding, but it was hard to focus on anything more with the adrenaline fading and exhaustion pulling at his limbs. "You drove them away." He explained and he smoothed the gel like substance over Grimm's wounds. He tried for where the wolf had dug it's nails through his wing, spilling blood and turning the white to red, but it hurt too much to touch.  
When he finished on Grimm's injuries, he curled up on his stomach next to the man, lacing their hands together. "We will rest now. Lady Rin will collect us later." He murmured, putting his forehead on Grimm's shoulder.

Grimm nodded lightly, his lips parting just the slightest bit. He had no energy to move or to do anything, so as Kyn curled up next to him, he found himself falling asleep quickly.  
When he woke up, though, it was a different story.  
He could feel himself gradually waking up, little by little, waking from his nightmares. The demon's thoughts were never anything short of horrifying. He jerked in the bed he realized he was in, a choked groaning sound leaving his throat. Aafter doing that a couple times, he heard Rin's voice saying his name and felt a body next to him and his eyes snapped open, a strangled scream escaping his mouth.

"Grimm, calm the hell down, you're okay!" Rin yelled over his scream. He forced his body to relax, breathing more like panting.  
"W- We're back in the room?" He asked.  
"Yeah," Rin nodded.  
Grimm looked around, still feeling rather weak. He saw Rin, Lacy in the corner, a woman with short spiky white hair he'd never seen before, and Kyn was next to him in the bed looking at him worriedly.

Kyn clutched his hand in reassurance from his position next to him on the bed. "All is well, Grimm." He said with a soft smile. "We are fine."

Grimm stared at Kyn, and his hand immediately tightened on his.  
"Who's... The lady over there?" he asked.  
"Oh, this is Nala. She's a waterbender. Old friend of mine. I knew she lives in this city, so yeah." Rin explained. "She healed Kyn's wing and chest." Grimm furrowed his brow, looking back at Kyn. He moved apart the material of his shirt to see a long scar going from his shoulder to his lower abdomen.  
"Did... Did I do that?" he asked, his voice coming out more as a squeak.

Kyn cast his eyes down. "It is not so bad. The wolves did much more damage." He shook his head, giving a reassuring smile. "It was just a scratch, really."

Rin, Lacy, and Nala at this point had all left the room. Grimm was staring at the scar with a look of pure horror. "I hurt you," he whispered. "He hurt you. I was going to /kill/ you, Kynareth." He fisted his hands in the fabric of Kyn's shirt, eyes wide with the realization that Kyn had almost died because of him.

"If you had not become him, I would be dead anyway. They would have snapped both of my wings and that would have been it for me." His hands reached up to cup Grimm's face. "I do not think he would have done it anyway. We talked a little." He gave a little huff of laughter. "This should not be of any concern to you. What is important is that you are alright. Everything else is insignificant."

"You /talked/?" Grimm furrowed his brown. "That's... New." He shook his head and suddenly burried his face in Kynareth's neck, a small whimper coming from his throat. His shoulders shook with the tears that threatened to escape. "I haven't had an incident in a long time. He gets even worse, though."

"Maybe he will not be so bad anymore. If he has someone he can trust, he might stop dragging on your conscience." Kyn suggested, keeping him close as if he would suddenly run off at any moment. "He does not hold much value to himself- or anything, really. Perhaps I can help?"

"Well, I don't know," Grimm chuckled a little. "I guess he likes you. A little bit. Maybe. Very slightly. I dunno. He has /some/ sort of soft spot for you from what you're telling me." He sighed. "I'm sure that if you've calmed me down once, you can do it again."

"Or perhaps it is that no one else has tried to talk?" Kynareth shrugged but felt a little prideful at the statement. "I think it may be the method, not the person." He lightly traced out little patterns on Grimm's arm with his finger. "Still, I do have a question. Two. Maybe more, but only two for now. Does Rin have the same thing? And what is it you call him?"

Grimm nodded. "Rin does have the same thing, only she does not go as far as mine does. She stays the same size she is now, and she tends to use the elements during it. Not fun. Lacy is the only one who can calm her down, because while the demon is out, Lacy can get inside her head and talk to her and talk her through calming down. They've got some sort of mind connection." He shrugged. "As for what I call him, he doesn't have a name."

"Perhaps I will ask him some other time." Kyn rocked back, shuffling with the blankets pooled around their waists. "Is there... how-" he bit his lip. "Nevermind. As long as you're feeling alright."

Grimm cocked his head. "What?" He furrowed his brow, too. "What were you gonna ask?"

"Nothing, it is too personal." He just smiled and shrugged. "But I suggest we dress for the day... If you feel you are not ready, then let me know if there is something you require."

Grimm sat up, too. "Dude. You know I'm not gonna leave you alone until you tell me what you wanted to ask." He rolled his eyes. "I'm a very persistent person."

"I have infringed on your past enough." He insisted. "It is a personal matter, I'm sure"

Grimm gave a frustrated sigh and put his head back on his pillow. "Well, now you've got me curious. I'm not moving until you ask me." He crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly, much like a child. He felt like one, to be honest, but he had a natural curiosity.

"Very well. You do not not need to." Kyn chuckled, pushing himself to his feet. "I suppose I will see you later, askk*." He walked over to Grimm's side of the bed to kiss his forehead, even if he insisted on that cute pouting.

Grimm's face softened. "I guess I'm still a little tired... But... I want to know what that question was. Will you tell me when you get back?" He took the chance and pulled Kyn down to kiss him on the lips quickly.

"If you want, sure." Kyn nodded after giving a little squeak of surprise from the sudden movement. He stood, gave a little wave and walked out to collect a back pack ish bag.

Grimm smiled a little, resting his head and closing his eyes again.  
/Daddy, where're you going?/  
/I have to leave for a while. I'm sorry, just... Take care of Mommy for me, okay? It's important that I leave./  
/For how long?/  
/... I don't know. I'll try to be back as soon as possible, though. I love you./  
/I love you, too, Daddy.../  
He smiled, turned, and left. It was only a few minutes later that the boy began crying softly. /Daddy? Wait, don't... Don't go! Daddy! Please?/ He whimpered.  
Grimm woke up with tears streaming down his face and a small choked sob leaving his throat, eyes wide. He wasn't sure what time it was or if Kyn was back, but he didn't want to move for some unknown reason.

Kyn had been crouched in the old priory garden, weeding the whole thing out and regrowing everything. There was a section for tea leaves, some for healing plants, some vegetables and some for more alchemical purposes. He doubted he'd find an alchembric set, though. Still, the mandrake was a lucky find. When everything was to his liking, he stashed up a few more things in the bag and set off for the city. He was almost reluctant to go back. As much as a fascinating place it was, it had an invisible smog hanging over the place. Out here, he could breathe without smothering coughs that would worry Grimm. He did have to return, though, lest someone get worried.

Grimm sighed and pushed some of the tears away, confused from the dream. he /knew/ that was him and his father, but... What was his father doing? Where the /hell/ was he going? He just left Grimm and his mother?  
Grimm shook his head and curled his body up underneath the covers, clenching his fists and squeezing his eyes shut. How could he have done that?

Kyn walked in a few minutes later, the brooding look on his face vanishing, replaced by that of warmth. "You are awake! That is-" he stopped, tilting his head. "Is something wrong?"

Grimm looked up, his eyes still a little puffy from the tears. "Yeah," he nodded, sniffling. "Just had some more bad dreams. Don't worry." He smiled.

"You are plagued by such things consistently?" The brunette perched on the edge of the bed, bag now laying on the floor nearby.

"Ah... Yeah." He nodded. "Almost every night. It's usually something to do with the demon. But I'm fine, it doesn't really matter anyway."

"Nightmares have been known to cause illness and stress. It is an issue if it's reassuring, please tell me if it gets worse." Kyn said gently. "In fact, I think I can make something to ease your dreams."

Grimm blinked. Something to ease the dreams? The dreams may have been bad, but they usually gave him information on his demon. And now apparently his dad. "Uh, that's okay." Grimm smiled. "You don't need to do that. If they get really bad, sure, but I'm okay right now."  
He looked around for a moment, running his fingers through his hair. "So what were you gonna ask me?"

Kyn still looked worried, but answered. "I was just wondering how you and him became connected? Was it... done to you?"

Grimm furrowed his brow and pursed his lips. "Y'know, I've always wondered that myself." He chuckled.

"You are unsure?" He looked shocked. "It seems there is much that you do not know of yourself." The surprise shifted to sorrow. "If there was something I could do to help, I would."

Grimm nodded. "I don't know a lot about myself, yeah." He scratched the back of his neck. "I'm still figuring out who I am. And... Thanks. I know you would."

Kyn brightened a bit, a smile faintly tugging and his lips. "Of course. Anything." He tucked his knees up to his chest and rested his chin on them. "It is high noon now, if you were curious. I have seen neither Lady Rin, Lacy or Nala."

"They're probably out about the city," Grimm waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, how's your wing feeling?"

Kyn scrunched up his nose. "It is... a bit sore." He admitted, rubbing it subconsciously. "I do not understand how Lady Nala had healed it, as it is the part of my kind that is not supposed to heal. It is the most fragile spot to those of my kind, though our bone structure itself is very fragile. Not much stronger than cartilage. Hunters had to be careful when-" he shook his head quickly and paused. "But I am very grateful to Lady Nala."

Grimm raised an eyebrow. "It's sore?" He smiled a little. "I've got good hands. I could, ah, help."

"How?" Kyn tilted his head, looking confused.

Grimm let a small grin grace his face, and he scooted over so he was sitting behind Kynareth. "Like this," he brought his hands up to Kyn's back, his thumbs moving to replace where Kyn's hands were rubbing. He dug his thumbs in, but not too hard.

His head leaned back a little and his posture slumped. It made his eyes flutter shut as the sensation made his body relax itself. "Where did you learn this?" He mumbled after a little contented sigh passed his lips.

Grimm smiled at Kyn's reactions. "I play guitar, I work out, I took care of Rin and Lacy. I think my hands just got talented all on their own." He chuckled, moving down a little to another part of his wing.

"Quite talented." He agreed. When Grimm's hands shifted, he whimpered a little, balling his hands. For the love of Akatosh, they were sensitive. "You must teach me this so I may return the favor."

Grimm smirked, twitching a little when he heard Kynareth whimper. Now /that/ was attractive.  
"I think I'd like that..." Grimm suddenly leaned forward, mouth close to the back of Kyn's neck. He made an "o" with his lips and blew on it softly, wanting to see what the other man would do. He kept moving his hands.

Kyn jumped with a half whine / half yelp. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and a shiver ran through his body, back immediately arching. He ended up pressing his back into Grimm's chest, and his hands went back as a snap instinct to hold himself still. He sent the man an incredulous look.

"What?" Grimm smirked. "You liked it." He teased, breathing on his neck again. He rubbed his thumb over his shoulder blades, fingers working the sides of his neck.

"It merely caught me by surprise." Kyn pressed his lips tightly together as he shivered again, but was quickly lulled back into a trance by every area Grimm worked his fingers over. "For the love of the Nine," He squirmed, "are you sure this is not sorcery?"

"I'm pretty sure," Grimm nodded. He finished working on Grimm's wing as much as he could, then moved to his shoulders, right below his neck. He applied pressure to his thumbs and rubbed the skin there, his mouth finally pressing to the back of Kyn's neck.

Kyn shifted so he had his legs stretched out in front of him, as they were beginning to lose feeling cross-legged. To answer, he just gave a contented hum and drooped his head down. "You are very strange in your talents, muthsera*." He commented softly. "All of you are."

"Hmm, I'll take that as a compliment." Grimm chuckled, his nose brushing brown locks. His hands massaged Kynareth's neck as his mouth traveled to just below his ear, nipping at it.

Kynareth unconsciously tilted his head for better access. He might've jumped at the nip if his muscles didn't feel like water at the treatment. Still, he let out a little "Hmm." And his toes curled a bit.

Grimm moved in order to graze his lips over Kyn's jawline, turning his head a little. His hand ended up threading through Kyn's hair, while the other one rested on his collarbone.

Kyn quivered under his fingers, bringing a hand up to brush the side of Grimm's face. He turned his head enough to kiss his on the nose. Not the actual intention, but it was hard enough to concentrate with the man's bony fingers sifting through his hair.

Grimm smirked a little, then moved forward to place his lips on Kyn's. He tilted his head and slipped his tongue out, running it along Kyn's lower lip.

Kyn squeaked, the sound muffled by Grimm's mouth. Never in his years had he seen a kiss shared like this, but he kinda liked it. It was different. He quickly mirrored the action, little pink tongue darting from his lips. A flush settled on his cheeks, a little embarrassed at the motion.

Grimm could tell that Kyn was a little... Well, confused, at the motions. This was probably new to him.  
He let his hand travel across the younger man's chest, then to his waist, fiddling with the fabric of his shirt.

Kyn trailed his lips down to Grimm's throat, resting his head against the man's shoulder. No, he didn't quite know what he was doing, but he was just trying and hoping it was alright.

Grimm smiled, "You know," he chuckled. "You're pretty good at this for a 700 year old man." He almost smacked himself for saying that. Way to ruin the mood, Grimm.

Kyn just chuckled as Grimm's face twisted into a grimace when he spoke. "21, but I will take that as a compliment." He bit his lip a moment. "Care to show me what I've been missing?"

Grimm purred. "I'd love to." He shifted so he was now in front of Kynareth, his knees on either side of Kyn's legs, straddling him. He pulled Kyn in for another kiss, then traveled down his neck. His hands slid up his shirt and he grinned. "You sure?"

Kyn gave a little hum and a nod, his arms around Grimm's neck. "I have broken so many rules, what is one more?" He laughed, nuzzling against the man's collar. "As long as you are comfortable."

Grimm nodded and slid down, his hands fiddling with Kyn's pants before sliding them off of his legs. He wasted no time in reaching his hand into his boxers, suddenly taking Kynareth in his palm.

Kyn slid his eyes shut, burying his head into the stands of aqua blue hair. Whatever Grimm was doing with his hands made him squirm a little. "I am unfamiliar with courting rituals, I apologize if I, er, stumble."

Grimm chuckled, moving his hand. "It's fine. You're doing great so far, though." He pulled his boxers down some to slide his tongue over Kynareth's length. "Just tell me if you don't like something."

Kyn chewed on his lip, posture ram-rod rigid and unconsciously twisted his fingers into the blankets with a look of almost discomfort. It was definitely a new sensation, one he was completely unfamiliar with and it wasn't exactly bad, just odd. He looked over at Grimm for reassurance.

Grimm pulled away a little, a bit nervous that he'd gone too far with this. He glanced up at Kyn. "Not likin' it?" He gave him a bit of a worried look. He wasn't good with this stuff either, really, considering he'd only ever been in one relationship.

"It is supposed to be like this?" He tilted his head, curious at the concerned look in Grimm's eyes. "It is unusual, but not in a bad way." He nodded to himself, looking a little more confident now. "I apologize for alarming you." He leaned over to kiss the man on the forehead, smiling. "But surely it is an experience to be shared by both partners, yes?"

"It can be," Grimm nodded. "But a lot of people like to wait until further into their relationship to... You know." Damn it, why was he so awkward? "We can if you want to. I don't think I'd mind at all." He smiled honestly.

Kyn shrugged, playing with a strand of his hair. "Whatever you are comfortable with, I will try." He conceded with an embarrassed grin. "Everything has changed so much and... well, I was never allowed a partner or a friend even. Even if I was, I..." He made a tumbling motion with his hands, face becoming more red. "I was never very, um..." He slumped, bowing his head to hide his face with his hair. "Adept?"

Grimm nodded. "Ah, okay. I get it." He chuckled. "It's fine. I mean, we can try this. Because I'd rather wait for a while. So we can try this, and if you end up not liking it, well, we can always try something else." He smiled. "Okay?"

"Okay." Kyn gave a little nod and a laugh, thankful Grimm was able to overlook the awkwardness.

Grimm nodded again and then lowered his head, his mouth wrapping around the tip of Kynareth's cock. He glanced up at him for reassurance.

He leaned back a little, resting his weight on his palms. He gave a nod for Grimm to continue, slowly letting the tenseness of his muscles drain away like during the massage.

Grimm lowered his head further, tongue flattening against the underside of Kyn's length. He pulled back up, jerking his hand a few times, then went back down, repeating what he had done before. He /really/ hoped he was doing okay.

Kyn gave a raspy groan, clenching his knuckles. No, not bad at all. His head titled back more, body definitely responding to Grimm's actions. "Dear Mara." He hissed softly, hips arching up a bit.

Grimm smirked somehow, happy that he was getting a better reaction from Kyn now. He swirled his tongue around the head, then went down almost all the way, dragging his teeth has he came back up.

Kyn squirmed, eyes clenched shut as he sank to his elbows. A whine tumbled from his throat at the feel of teeth on the sensitive area. Even his wings shuddered slightly at the overbearing sensations and his toes curled a bit.

Grimm took a deep breath after pulling off of him completely, then plunged down, taking him all the way in. He gagged a little around his length, but nonetheless groaned around it. He sucked lightly and then bobbed his head multiple times as he groaned again.

Kyn threw his head back with a shout that broke off into a loud moaning, the balls of his feet digging into the mattress. His mouth went slack at the increasing noise coming from it. One eye peaked open to glance down at Grimm, quickly fluttering shut again as he ground his hips against the material of the sheets. He gave a curse or two in the Old Language, cheeks flushing bright pink, wondering how the Gods could bar their followers from this.

Grimm could tell he was /very/ close to his release, so he increased his speed and hummed around him, bobbing his head quickly and steadily. He swallowed, sucking again and glancing up at Kyn. The man was unbearably close, he noticed.

His hips jerked and he clenched the sheets tightly as it hit him, making his whole body tense up suddenly, then drop trembling onto the bed with breathy panting. "Grimm... Gods almighty." He let go of the material and put his hands on his forehead, eyes closed and teeth biting into his lower lip. "Is it... always like that?"

"I would think so," Grimm chuckled when he pulled away, licking his lips. He was panting from the lack of air, but smiling. "I haven't done anything like that in a long time."

Kyn gave a weak "Oh." and pulled himself up into a sitting position, only to lean forward and rest his head on Grimm's shoulder. "I assume now I am to return to notion, yes?"

"Nah, you can do that some other time. I'll be fine." He chuckled, running his hair through Kyn's hair. "Thanks. It's nice to... Well, have someone."

"And it is nice to be accepted by someone." He pressed his lips to the pulse of Grimm's throat. "I am glad that you do not have to be alone anymore."

Grimm sighed. "I am, too, trust me." He looked down. "Ah, you'd better fix yourself before Rin or Lacy come down." He chuckled.

"Fix... myself?" Kyn looked down at his hands, then his body. "I do not... What is wrong with me?" He little up, eyebrows quirked in question.

"You need to put your pants back on, dude." Grimm laughed, kissing Kyn's forehead before pulling away to go to his closet, changing his clothes. He put on a normal pair of jeans and a dark purple T-shirt, sticking on some tennis shoes he had lying around. "Sometimes I love not wearing skinny jeans."

Kyn blushed, pulling on the discarded article. He fumbled with the buttons for a moment- and really, what was with things these days?- and tottered over to Grimm. "I like it either way." He piped up, grinning that he managed to snap the button in place and keep it zipped.

"Of course you do-,"  
"Hey, honey, don't... Don't hurt yourself any more than you already are, okay?" Grimm heard Rin's voice from outside, along with a whimper of pain from someone else.

The brunette looked up in confusion. "Ah, it appears Lady Rin is back and.." He walked over to the window, peering up. Lacy?

Grimm furrowed his brow and joined Kyn at the window, looking out just in time to see Rin, Lacy, Nala, and a boy with them. He had an arm wrapped around his stomach as Rin helped him walk to their little alleyway. "What the hell is going on?" Grimm thought out loud.

Kynareth looked a little lost for a moment and scrambled up onto the ground above, following the small group into the alley. "Ladies Rin, Lacy and Nala, welcome back. Do you require assistance for your friend?" His wings folded back, tentative.

The boy's head snapped up at Kynareth's voice, his back straightening out so he could try and see. He almost immediately cried out in pain, arm tightening around his stomach.  
"Don't do anything right now, we got him," Rin said to Kynareth. Grimm was peering at them, eyes narrowed.  
"Who's he?" He questioned.  
"We'll tell you in a minute."

"Yes, Lady Rin." Kyn stood back obediently and waited to be called upon if they needed his aid. He shuffled a little closer to the older man, mirroring his quizzical look.

Rin and Lacy set the boy down in the large tent, Nala kneeling next to the boy. She lifted his shirt to reveal and large burn mark, bleeding and peeling over his stomach. Nala said nothing, only shook her head and bended the water from the bowl next to her to shape around her hands, and set them on the burn mark. The boy instantly shrieked, trying his best not to move too much. Lacy closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears, turning away.  
The water glowed around Nala's hands, and eventually the boy's whimpering stopped, leaving him panting. Nala pulled her hands away and nodded at Rin.  
"Thanks, chica." Rin smiled, kneeling next to the boy. "Coby, are you alright?"  
"Okay, seriously, who is this kid?" Grimm butted in, flailing his hands.  
"Shut up."

Kyn blinked in fascination. He actually hadn't been awake when Nala healed his wing, but they explained it to him. Seeing it, though, was beautiful, dampened only by the boy's shrieks of pain. As curious as he was, he remained quiet and watched, chuckling at Grimm's impatience.

Rin brushed some of the boy's shaggy dirty-blonde hair from his dark brown eyes, being careful not to touch the bruise onhis cheekbone. "Hon, you doing okay?"  
He nodded weakly, closing his eyes. "I'm fine... Thanks." He whispered. Rin wiped away the tears that had fallen, shaking her head. She turned to Grimm and Kyn.  
"This is... Coby. Coby Byron." She said. "He's... A friend of a friend."

"I see... may I ask how he has come upon such a state?" Kyn eyed the bruises and the mark left by the burn with concern. "Has he been in a fight?"

"I guess you could say that," Rin nodded. "Coby? Mind if I tell them?" The boy shook his head.  
"At this point I don't care what you do, to be honest." He turned over on his side.  
"Okay, well, Coby's dad did that to him." Rin said. "And Coby ran out. His mom did something too but he won't tell me what."

Kyn shook his head. "Not even in the lands of Skyrim have I seen such treatment upon kin!" He bristled, causing a small vine-like plant to wrap around his ankle and curl in the dirt like a snake. "Surely we must find them and report them to the Gua- police."

"Can't do that..." Coby muttered. "Tried it before. My dad's good at fooling the police. He can act sober and everything, and he makes up excuses for why I look like I do. He's a great liar." He sighed, looking as if he had fallen asleep. He probably had.  
"There's basically no way out for him." Rin said. "He's tried so many times to have something done about this but each time he fails."

"So we keep him safe with us here." Kyn suggested. "If it is as bad as you say, and looks, then he cannot be allowed to return. What is his age?"

"He's seventeen." Rin answered. "And I guess we do, because I really don't wanna send him back to that hell hole. His dad will end up literally killing him if he doesn't kill himself first."

"Then he shall stay, if that is acceptable by everyone."He nodded, glancing over at Grimm for his approval as well.

"If... If his parents are really as bad as you say they are, then yeah. He can stay." Grimm nodded.  
Coby suddenly stirred, sitting up quickly. Apparently he hadn't been asleep. "I can't stay!" he said, eyes wide. "If I don't go back he'll find me and he'll hurt me again and... I can't stay."

"If you go back, it will happen anyway." The brunette pointed out, "With us, you can be sure we will keep you safe." He smiled brightly in reassurance. "And it is... was my job to do such things. I cannot let this go without trying." His tone was determined, old vows stirring up in his head.

Coby stared at them for a moment, but mostly at Kyn. "I don't even know you people. I hardly know Rin."  
"And we don't know you, yet here we are offering to protect you." Grimm pointed out.  
Coby paused. "Fine," he said shakily, laying back down.  
"He's... Been through a lot." Rin said to them quietly. "His best friend had to move away recently. He doesn't really have anyone anymore."

"I am regretful to hear he has suffered such things. I wish I could be of assistance." He cast his eyes down, grin fading. That seemed to be a common occurrence these days, he noticed. He was out of his time and unfamiliar with new problems arising, always wanting to help but being unable to. He scuffled his foot, looking as the plant that had fastened itself around his ankle.

"I do, too, trust me." Rin sighed. "His best friend was one of my close friends. I saw her a lot, even though Lacy and I travel. She talks about Coby all the time. Had nothing but good things to say about him. And sometimes she'd come crying because of something that happened. She got hurt so much trying to protect him from his parents. You wouldn't even believe it."

"I see it and I do not." Kyn smiled weakly. "And it pains me to know it exists. Where is his friend now?"

"She moved to Oregon. It's on the other side of the country." She shook her head. "Her mom found a job there."

"I do not believe I am familiar with Oregon." He cocked his head in thought. "But may I ask; does he posses magical qualities of any sort? Or, uhm, bending?"

"Nope. He's just a normal guy with horrible parents. I think the only thing remotely magical about him is the fact that he's managed to put up with it for this long."  
"You know I gave up trying to-"  
"Don't finish that sentence, please? I don't think I can handle it." Rin cringed. "His friend, Taylor, was psychic, though." She said to Kynareth.

Kyn hummed to himself at that. "Interesting. Still, it is nice to meet you, Coby. I ho- oh! How terribly rude of me! I have not introduced myself." His whole face flushed and he bowed, folding his hands. "I am Kynareth Fanacasecul, pleasure to meet you." He gave a crooked smiled and stood.

Coby wasn't good with people. He couldn't even bring himself to make eye contact with the two men standing before him. "It's, uh... Nice to meet you, too." He said shakily.  
"And I'm Grimm, in case you were wondering." Grimm chuckled. "Sorry. I'm being a jackass. It's great to meet ya, Coby."  
Coby watched them for a moment, quirking an eyebrow as if he knew something they hadn't told him yet. He looked down again at the ground and stuttered. "I'm... I'm sorry if I turn out to be a waste of space."

The brunette pulled a smile, messing with his curly brown hair. "Lady Kyne used to say that to me too, but I am sure there was a reason she kept me around. So please, do not hesitate to talk. I hope that we do get to know each other better."

"I really don't think you want to know me," Coby mumbled, curling up. He pulled his hood over his head, wrapping his sweatshirt tightly around him. If anything he was going to keep his body concealed. "But thanks. A lot. It does mean something to me."

"Of course I would." Kyn tilted his head in confusion, but shook it off. "But I am glad for that." He nodded to Coby, and sent a quick smiled over to Grimm.

Grimm smiled back. "Another added member. Cool." He grinned this time.  
"Alright, alright, you guys go away now. He needs to sleep." Rin tried to shoo them away.  
"The ground can't be that comfortable, though." Grimm said. "We're not using the bed at the moment, how about he sleeps down there?"  
"I don't have to-," Coby began, looking up again.  
"Shut your face. You're sleeping on the bed." Grimm insisted.

Grimm helped Coby up, letting the boy lean against him. He smirked at the light blush covering his face and helped him to the window, where he set him down inside. "Bed's over there. Make yourself comfortable." Coby gave a grateful nod and slowly stalked over to the bed, pulling back the covers and sliding under them. he immediately curled in on himself and attempted to sleep, choking back any tears that threatened to fall.  
Grimm headed back up. "Jeez, that kid really does have issues."

Kyn nodded in agreement from where he hovered nearby. "I hope it will get better with time, though I understand it takes time to heal things like these." He sent Grimm a quick glance, opened his mouth to say something, then closed it and shook his head. "We have the rest of the day to ourselves, then?"

Grimm raised an eyebrow, noticing that Kyn was about to ask him something. He shrugged it off, thinking he'd ask later. "We should, yeah." Grimm nodded. He looked over to see Nala staring at the bowl of water. "Um... Is she...?"  
"She's fine. She's just a little strange." Rin chuckled.

Kyn looked over at the woman, shrugging. "All of your talents are very fascinating, and I am humbled to find one who's healing exceeds my own. I cannot repair bone damage like she can. Just flesh wounds." He smiled. "I would hope to learn, but with my field, it is doubtful."

Nala looked over at him, then made some wild hand gestures.  
Rin smiled. "She said she'd love to teach you. But she knows that it would probably be doubtful as well."

Kyn blinked at the motions. "You understand her? I have wondered why she has not said anything since we met." His lips tugged up again. "Quite interesting indeed."

"Yeah. She can hear perfectly fine, but she's mute. She doesn't speak. Sign language." She made some hand gestures of her own. "See? I just told you that I have rabies. But don't worry, I don't really have rabies."

"A raby? Sounds distasteful." He scrunched up his nose at the word. "I hope they are not dangerous. It is... a bug of some sort?" He mimicked a little winged insect with his hands.

Rin put a hand to her mouth, snorting. "No. It's... White foam that comes from the mouth. Some wild animals have that and if they bite you you'll get it, too."

"Zok bein!*" Kyn gasped, a hand over his mouth. "I have never come across such a thing." He murmured worriedly. "I am glad you do not have these rabies than!" His face was genuinely alarmed at the prospect.

Grimm laughed at Kynareth's reaction. "Alright. Anyone up for ice cream?"

"I suppose. But..." His head was shaking again. "Why is it frozen? And what do you do with it?" Just when he thought he was getting used to things here too... A sigh escaped his lips and he hopelessly accepted the fact that whenever he thought he was pretty well caught up, someone would prove him dreadfully wrong.

"Oh," Grimm chuckled. "It's frozen flavored milk, basically. Creamy, though. Hence the name 'ice cream.' It's really freakin' good."

"You.. eat it?" Kynareth stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Cream is what makes butter, yes? And milk... you drink that too? But you could become sick!" He blinked, uncomprehending.

Grimm's mouth quirked upward in an amused smile. "Technology has improved, my friend. Milk gets cleaned and shit. All of the pests are taken out of it to make it... Drinkable. And the cream isn't what makes butter. It's- Oh, just come on. You're trying this, alright? It's really good. Trust me."

"I do not... Tech-what?" His eyebrows where drawn together, but he finally nodded. "I will try, I suppose." He sounded a little nervous, but followed the pair onto the sidewalk.

They walked down the streets to the ice cream shop (Rin had told Lacy to stay with Coby in the room; Lacy didn't like ice cream), waiting in line until it was their turn. Rin got a sundae and Grimm got himself a plain vanilla ice cream cone, and getting a chocolate one for Kyn. He handed it to him. "Just lick it."

The shorter man took the frozen treat and obediently ran his tongue over the top, squeaking in shock at the taste. "It is very sweet." He narrowed his eyes, taking another experimental lick. He pondered the flavor for a few minutes, before shrugging and tentatively flicking his tongue out to scoop up the frozen cream.

Grimm stared at Kynareth, eye twitching a little. Rin nudged him and he looked over only to see her wiggling her eyebrows. He pushed her and almost caused her to drop her sundae.  
"So," Grimm said, eye still twitching. "You like it?

Kyn hummed happily. "It is very good! I thank you for bringing me here." He grinned in contentment, which shifted to of a more confused smile at the two's actions. He just shrugged, sucking on the top in oblivious bliss.

Grimm's face heated up and he squeaked a little, something that was rare for him. His eyes were a little wider than usual and he couldn't tear his damn eyes away from Kyn. Rin was obviously enjoying Grimm's reactions. "Well," Grimm squeaked. "I'm glad you like it."

"Uh, Grimm... you are crushing your iced cream." The brunette pointed out, looking a little worried. The man looked flustered and he couldn't tell why. He glanced around for good measure, seeing nothing.

Grimm blinked and looked down, seeing that he was in fact, crushing his ice cream. "Damn it," he grumbled. It was already dripping over his hand because the cone was broken. He stomped over to the garbage can and tossed it in, getting a napkin and wiping his hand up. "Thanks a lot."

Kyn blinked, genuinely confused now. "We may share, if you do not mind?" He held out the cone, head tilted to the side. "I am sorry about the loss of your own." He have a little smile.

Grimm bit his tongue. "I deserve it." He grumbled, reaching forward and grabbing Kyn's hand along with the cone, bringing it forward to lick it as well.

Kyn giggled. "As you do." He took a little lick from it too before growing conscious of the growing stares around them. "Um?" He looked over at Grimm, one eyebrow hitched in puzzlement.

Grimm glared at everyone staring at him. "People are stupid. We're sharing ice cream. So what." He snapped at basically everyone in there. When people continued staring, he rolled his eyes and leaned forward, placing a kiss on Kyn's nose. "Anybody else got a problem? No? Continue on with your lives!"

"Come now, Grimm, that will not put them off." Kyn grinned, moving up to kiss him full on, making people in the immediate area flush and look away.

Grimm's eyes widened again at the sudden contact, but he soon just smirked against his lips and kissed back, hand on his neck. A few moments later he pulled away, grinning. "Well, then. Assertive Kyn? I think I like that."

"Just proving a point~" He blushed but fixed a dorky smile on his face. "I am n- oh!" He spotted a stray tomcat nearby, eyes going wide in delight. He went over to pet it but paused, eye twitching ever so slightly. "What if it has rabies?" He peered suspiciously down at the small animal which stared quizzically up at him.

Rin laughed, walking over and crouching down to stroke the cat's head. It purred and accepted the contact. "No rabies. You can tell if it has rabies without the white foam." She smiled.

"Ah." Kyn sat down cross legged, giggling when it crawled into his lap and he scratched it's back and head. "Cats were so rare where I lived, there were mostly dogs. Big, hunting dogs. The closest thing to cats I mainly saw were the Khajiit, and I am sure they would not like to be called that." The small animal hopped off his legs and wandered over to Grimm, meowing.

Grimm cocked his head down at the cat, watching as it did the same. He leaned down, smiling, and picked it up, cradling it in his arms. "Cats don't normally like me." He mused.

"Perhaps he knows you are a good person." Kyn stood again, stretching. "Like I could tell, despite how nonchalantly you banished someone into the folds of a book for all eternity." He gave an airy laugh.

"Hey, whaddya gonna do?" he shrugged, letting the cat hop down from his arms. It wound its way around each of their legs before running off. "We should probably get back to Lacy and Coby."

His companion merely shrugged as they started back down the street. "I just hope he has gotten some rest since we left."

Grimm nodded. When they got back, they looked into the basement only to see Coby still curled up on the bed sleeping, with Lacy passed out next to him. They were both so tiny it was cute. As Coby stirred and turned over, Lacy also moved, her forehead against his back.

Kyn chuckled at the sight. "They look like kin." He said softly they they unconsciously shifted closer together. "But they are asleep. This is good."

Rin was smiling like an idiot. "That's so fucking cute," she put a hand to her mouth. She knew about Coby's sister and it really struck a cord for her. "We should let them sleep."


	2. Facility stuff and on

Kyn shrieked unintentionally at the little blast. Fire was bad, very very bad. Fire meant a village burning down in the middle of winter and a brown feather in his small palms. Fire meant running until his bare feet were purple and the sounds of horses's thudding hooves fading into the distance while smoke rose up like a foreboding beacon. He shuddered, following blindly after Grimm's form. Xiao led them into an old factory before spinning around to face them, fire smoldering from his fingertips.

Grimm sneered at the man. "Xiao. What the hell are you doing here?" He growled, arm ready to transform if he needed to.

"Haven't you heard? I got a promotion. Workin' for the higher ups now." He grinned, fire flickering at his fingertips and reflecting in his grey eyes. "I get to bend too, flushing out pathetic cowards like you."

"Ha!" Grimm scoffed. "/You/? The last time I saw you, you could barely land a blow on me." He smirked.

"Things have changed, Grimmy!" The man laughed, pointing his finger out. "I've been training." So shot to the side, singeing the ground around the two's feet. "So why don't you put that little book down and fight like a real man, eh?"

Grimm chuckled. "That's fine," he put the book in his back pocket, holding his hands up. He transformed his arm into the gun. "I can be a real man when I want to."

Xiao smirked, settling into a fighting stance. "You," he pointed at Kyn, who flinched. "Back up." The brunette did so, eyes on the flames. "Alright then, go!" He darted foreword, flicking a few sparks in Grimm's direction.

Grimm dodged the attacks, ducking and aiming his gun for the other man. He fired away, bullets flying for Xiao but none actually hitting him. They came very close, however. "Huh. You have gotten good! Last time I lodged a bullet in your shoulder within the first ten seconds!" He laughed.

"You should drop this one man act and come work with me." Xiao gave a grin, sending a little tendril of flame out that singed Grimm's pant leg. "Or are you still upset that I nearly burned up that little book of yours?"

"I'd never work with a killer," Grimm scowled. "And yes, I am still pretty damn upset about that." He fired for the man's head, and a bullet wizzed past his cheek as he moved. It left a small slice on his cheek.

"Killer!" The man howled in laughter, "Look in the mirror, Grimm! We're all alike in the end!" He jumped foreword, grabbing his arm as smoke began to rise from his hand. "C'mon, it'll be just like the old days."

"Shit!" Grimm tore his arm away, a hand-shaped burn mark on his skin. He glared at Xiao. "I'm not going back with you. I've got a life now. And I'm pretty damn fuckin' happy if I do say so myself." He took his arm, and jabbed the gun into Xiao's gut. "Now, would you like to die with a bullet, or in a book?"

"A life? /You/?" Xiao wheezed, glancing over where Kynareth stood motionless. "With baby face over there? You're better than that, man." He danced away and Grimm shot the area he just was. "I can fix that." He said in a sing-song voice.

Grimm smiled and look down at the spot he'd shot at. "Seriously, bro. I could get bored at any time and you know what happens then."

"Cheating now? Tsk /tsk/, you've fallen far." The redhead shook his head, hands on his hips. "S'not like you." He launched himself up in the air suddenly, pouring out a stream of flames from his palms.

Grimm jumped away, rolling for cover. When the flames stopped, he popped up again and sighed. "Yup, I'm bored." His arm changed back to normal, he flipped out his book, and opened it. "Enter!" He shouted, grinning. The light flashed, and as it disappeared, Grimm looked down at the book. Xiao's horrified face on the page. It faded away. "Well, that was fun!" Grimm laughed, suddenly wincing and dropping his book. "Fuck. It did it again." His hands were burned and bleeding, skin peeling.

Kyn seemed to snap out of his stupor, stumbling over to Grimm's side, necklace already glowing. He carefully avoided the burn marks on the floor, when he made his way over, stopping to rub the salve gently onto Grimm's bleeding palms. "Are you hurt anywhere else? Oh.." He caught sight of the hand print. He called upon a smaller aloe branch to take care of it, both of them oblivious to the call that was being made across the room.

"Besides those? No. I'm fine. Thanks. Are you okay?" Grimm furrowed his brow, referring to the fact that he'd acted strangely.

"Hmm? Yes, I am fine." He finished fixing him up, stepping back slightly. "So how did you know eachother? It had sounded like passed conradary."

Grimm stared at Kyn, suddenly very nervous. "Promise you won't... You won't leave me?"

The man gave him a confused look. "Of course I will not."

Grimm sighed. "When I was... I think 21, I went around with Xiao, um... Helping him." He looked down. "I was basically a serial killer. He told me who he wanted to find, I tracked them down, I held them down for him, and while they were helpless, he... Killed them. We did that for a good two years. It wasn't until I realized that most of these people were completely innocent that I split from him." His voice had taken on a lost tone, staring at the ground.

"I understand." Kyn nodded and offered a small smile. "We would get folks at the shrine who were apart of this infamous band of assassins called the Dark Brotherhood. They killed in the name of their God, Sithis, and his matron, the Night Mother. Those who would wish death upon another leave a note at the statue of the Lucky Lady in Bravil, and a member would be dispatched to remove them. They did not know why they killed; many because they simply needed the money. They would come to us and beg forgiveness." He said in a nostalgic tone. "They are not murderers, merely misguided."

"Well, I'm glad you don't see me as that." Grimm chuckled. "I get nightmares about that, too. That I'll go back to doing it."

"I do not think you will." Kyn twined his fingers into the material of Grimm's shirt. "You are aware, and it is not li-" the last note trailed off as he suddenly wobbled a bit, collapsing into the man's arms with a tranq dart buried in his neck. A few men stood at then entrance to the factory, all armed and weapons and other tranquilizing tools at the ready.

"What the hell?" Grimm shouted, yanking the dark out of Kyn's neck. He tossed it to the side as he looked up, anger evident in his features. "Who the fuck are you assholes? Get outta here!" He went to reach for his book.

Fingers tensed on triggers at the movement. "By order of the FBMR, you are under arrest for use of magic in a populated area. Come with us quietly and there will be no trouble." One man said calmly, toward the front of the group.

"No trouble my ass," Grimm said, standing and holding Kyn up. "Why the hell'd you knock him out? He was healing me!" He gave them an incredulous look, but was utterly confused.

"Aid to a verified dangerous caster with unknown potential, immediately classified as a threat. Now I won't repeat myself again, come with us." The man stated almost robotically, eyes narrowing behind his visor.

"Am I allowed to carry my friend here?" Grimm asked, rolling his eyes.

"If you come peacefully, yes. Now remove all magical items from your person and drop them on the floor. Him too." He jerked his gun at Kyn's slumped form, waving two men over on standby.

"The only one I can drop is my book, and no way in hell am I doing that. No one touches it." He growled.

"Drop it or you will be brought in by force." The man snapped. "Or have I not made myself clear?"

Grimm stared at the men, eyes narrowed. "Then bring me in by force. I will not leave this book willingly."

"Very well." He waved his hand and darts were fired off, one nailing right into Grimm's shoulder. "Now, take the book and the crystal thing and put them in the bin for examination." The leader barked out, sending units forward.

Grimm felt himself beginning to go unconscious, slumping to the floor. He was weak and he reached for his book, at least attempting to keep it safe.

One stepped foreword, smacking the object away from Grimm's hands to reach for it himself, only to reel back, hissing. "It burnt, sir." The leader made an exasperated noise. "So get some fucking giant tweezers! Just get that book. That is and order!" One of the others raced outside to retrieve said object.

Grimm moaned, vision beginning to blur. They couldn't take the book. It was the only thing he had left.  
With one last look at Kyn's unconscious form and the book, he felt himself slip and everything went black.

_**[Timeskip**_**_]_**

The first thing Kyn noticed when he woke up was a certain air of strain around him. He groaned, curling up a little tighter and rubbing his head. He could hear every shift in the Earth around them, sense the sunlight casting down on the grass, Oblivion, even the feel the wind through the trees. His head pounded at the sudden awareness and he reached up to grip the crystal, freezing when his hand snatched at air. He sat up, the room spinning around, eyes wide in panic. It was gone and... he looked around the small, bare empty white room. Where was Grimm?

Grimm awoke to absolutely nothing.  
Well. This wasn't much of a shock. Before Kyn he'd been used to waking up alone.  
What worried him was the place he was in.  
A dark damp room with nothing in it, only him. Kyn was gone. Oh, god, where the hell is /Kyn?/

Two men came in with white coats on, lifting up his chin and shining a light in his eyes, scribbling some notes down, snapping in his face, more notes, and some poking and prodding before they finally left him alone. He would've asked where they were, if only his head could stop pounding so he could see straight. They were gone now, though, and Kyn could only pull his knees up to his chest and think about what could've possibly happened that he had missed.

"Hello?" Grimm called, hands on the floor as he pushed himself into a crouching position. "Is anyone there? Where am I?" He felt stupid for calling out to thin air.

The door to Grimm's room opened and in stepped a woman with curly black hair and a smile. "I see you're awake. That's good. How're you feeling?" She took out a clip board and twirled a pen in her fingers.

Grimm blinked, standing up. He swayed for a moment. "Ah, dizzy- Wait, what is- what the hell is going on?"

"Hmm, noted. Not unusual, that'll go away. Oh, we're at the FBMR facility thing where they hold all the 'criminal' magic users. Bunch of bullshit to me, but hey, what can you do?" She sighed, tapping the metal with the end of the pen. "Oh, sorry. Name's Irene by the way. I'm you and your friend's new caretaker."

"My friend?" Grimm said quickly. "Where is he? Is he okay?"

"Oh he's fine, just a little confused." She quipped easily, jotting down some scratchy notes. "Alright, well, we'll bring you something to eat in about an hour. Try to hold out til then, mkay?" She winked and crossed the room to exit.

"Wait!" He called after her, scrambling over a bit. "What are they gonna do to us?"

"Hmm, just run a few tests, find out what you're capable of and such." She waved her hand. "If you're a non-threat, they send you back. If you're a versatile threat, they eliminate you. If you're a docile user, then they make use for you. And a word from the wise," She turned, giving a little concerned look. "You are not in that first category. Play nice for a while and I'll see what I can do."

Grimm couldn't help but feel a sharp twist of worry. "Do you know what category my friend might be considered in?"

"Probably the last one, he ain't said a word yet. Didn't fight or anything when he woke up. But you said when they caught you two, or so the report says, he heals. They'll probably throw him with the war medics and send him off to wherever." Irene shrugged. "Right now you, my newly found friend, are tottering between the last two. Don't be in the middle, if you know what's good."

"I do know what's good. It's what I can't control that I'm afraid of." He grit his teeth, feeling sick to his stomach suddenly. "Shit," he doubled over, holding his stomach and sitting against the wall. He looked at the girl. "Um, thanks."

Irene nodded. "Just yell out if you need anything, which you look like you do right now. Sickness in the stomach?" She perched her pen to write.

"Yeah, but most of that might be from worry." He chuckled weakly.

"Alright then." She clicked her heels as the door opened and she stepped out, flanked by two guards. She made her way down the hall and down two floor, opening another door with the passcode and photo ID. Kyn looked up as she walked in, rubbing his head. She asked the same type of questions and he would nod, going through something similar to what just happened with Grimm.

Grimm leaned his head back against the wall. He didn't know what to do and all of the ways that this could turn out flooded his mind; him turning into the demon, him not turning into the demon and still being sent away from Kynareth, him being killed and leaving Kynareth... This is why he never go involved with anyone, damn it! He always got hurt!  
Or this case, maybe killed.

As promised, an hour later, Irene came back with a tray of meat, bread and potatoes, holding it out for him to take. "So, why don't you tell me a little about you? Powers or no, just to pass the time."

Grimm's stomach was feeling a little better by now, so he gingerly took the bread and picked at it. "Alright... The name's Slender. People call me Grimm. As for powers, the assholes here took my book. I only ever used it for people who were a threat to others, though..." he shook his head.

"A book?" Irene perked an eyebrow. "What, do you like, whack them over the head and make them lose their memories or something?" She didn't sound criticizing, just curious. "Cause that's pretty badass."

Grimm let out a genuine laugh. "No, it has the power to take whoever the enemy is and trap them in the bindings and inkings of a book somewhere in the world, never to escape. My mom gave it to me when I was young."

"Damn fine birthday gift if you ask me." She smirked. "I could've used that a few times in my life. So, the repercussions are...? Cause as awesome as that sounds, it's gotta come with a pretty price."

"Sometimes it burns my hands. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if one day it just burned my whole body up." He sighed.

"Well that sucks." Her brow furrowed and a little beeping noise went off. She glanced down at her pager in distaste. "Wow, can they really not handle one cat person? Sheesh." She stood, flattening out her skirt. "Well, it's been nice talking to ya Slender. But, if I were you, I'd leave a book like that alone. Don't wanna be burning up when you got that other kid there depending on you." She rolled her eyes but grinned. "Cause when I finally got him talking, you're the only one that came up." She winked, walking off.

Grimm blinked and smiled a little, wishing that he could keep talking or better, get out of here and actually go see Kyn. But he settled for eating his bad food, still not feeling so well.

The next day, they took him out to a large training area, gave him some targets to go after and told him blankly to show them what he could do. Irene was watching from the sidelines, giving the thumbs up.

Grimm shot her a slightly concerned by irritated glance, then looked at the targets. He took a deep breath and let it go. Faster than he meant to, he changed his arm into the gun and shot at the targets with precision and accuracy.

The spectators looked shocked, certainly not being able to foresee his pulling a gun out of seemingly nowhere. They looked pleased at this revelation, watching Grimm shoot off a few more targets. "Now, enough with the gun. Show us what else you can do."

Grimm looked at them for a moment, a little annoyed. He changed his arm into the scythe, then turned and went after any target he could, throwing in some of the martial arts he'd learned over the years, too. Any dummies or targets that were there got sliced to pieces.

Again, they were grinning, talking in low excited voices about war and super soldiers. "What else? Let some of that anger out! /Destroy/ your enemies!" They called in encouraging tones

Grimm glared at them. "I don't exactly think you want me to let my anger out!" he called back. "That's all I can do, unless you give me my book."

"Why's that?" One of them questions, adjusting precariously perched slim glasses. "Natural disasters? Bulletstorm? Whatever you can throw out, we can take." They ignored the question of the book, probably not even knowing what he was talking about.

"I highly doubt that!" Grimm laughed bitterly. "Even if it didn't mess you up physically, you'd probably be scarred for life mentally." He sneered, arm changing back to normal.

"So, illusion?" The same man asked, crossing his arms. "We got a room for that. Now is the time you showcase all of your talents for evaluation, if you please."

"See, the thing is, sir," Grimm said, "It's not necessarily a talent or something I can showcase. I can't willingly call on it."

"Is that so..." He murmured, writing on his board. "Well, maybe we can speed that along." He picked up a little radio device and said spoke into it. "Bring subject #2274 to the evaluation room, please? Bring the Enforcers, this guy ain't cracking." A few moments later, two men wearing white masks walked in with a chattering Kyn, who was looking largely ignored. He spotted Grimm, beaming and trying to wave or something but was held still by the two men in masks.

Grimm felt a large relief flood over him at seeing that Kynareth was okay, but he was still very confused as to what they were going to do. "And you're doing what, exactly?" he called, eyes narrowing. "I'd really you rather not do anything you'd regret."

"You'll see." The man said smugly and made a shooing gesture at Kyn. "Go ahead." The brunette blinked. "Go ahead what?" At his puzzlement, the glasses wearing observer sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Get him to... do whatever." He demanded, which made Kyn even more confused. "I do not hold power over that." He looked over at Grimm, head tilted. "Do what?"

Grimm rolled his eyes, "These idiots are trying to get me to... You know." He made face. "They don't even know what it is, though."

"That's what we're trying to find out, /sir/." The glasses man snapped, standing between Kyn and Grimm. "Now this is your last chance. Let it out or we'll use force." He grabbed the brunette's jaw like a parent scolding a child.

"He can't!" Grimm snapped back. "Jesus Christ! What don't you get about that? He cannot willingly let it out, and neither can I."

"Then I suppose nothing will happened if I do this?" The man let go of Kyn's jaw to grab his hand, running his palm over the small fingers before twisting one back with a snap, earning a shriek from the brunette. "Or this?" Another snap and Kyn squirmed in their hold, shaking his head.

Grimm's eyes widened and he stepped forward. "Don't you touch him!" He yelled, nostrils flaring in anger. "You really, /really/ don't wanna do that."

"Show me why then, or I'll rip his throat open and bleed him dry." The man challenged, running a suddenly clawed finger up Kyn's neck. "I don't think you want that."

"And I don't think you want me to show you what this fucking thing is that you're trying to bring out!" He was going to ask them if they all had death wishes, but he figured that probably wasn't the best thing to say. He looked over at Irene desperately.

The man's claws retracted as Irene nodded, stepping foreword. "I think we can pick this up later, don'tcha think?" He asked the man, who bristled, skin rippling like scales for a moment. "Of course, Irene." He hissed, waving her away. "Put that one back in his room," he pointed at Grimm, "and that one of the other end of the building." He finger shifted to Kyn as he frowned, stalking away. "And what have I told you about potential murder, huh? Next time it won't be a warning!" She called after him. He slammed the door shut behind him. "Huh. Douchebag." Then Enforcers prodded Kyn foreword, who sent a little smile to Grimm and Irene led the aqua haired man in the other direction.

Grimm smiled back at Kynareth, relieved that he was going to be fine. "Thank you," he said to Irene. "Thanks a lot." He really was grateful to her for stopping it.

"They're only allowed to go so far. Sorry." She shrugged. "They'll probably get you moved to a higher security cell somewhere and, well, you're not exactly tottering in the right direction anymore." She warned, flattening her hand and shaking it. "But we'll get that sorted out. Brownie points for your protective issues." She smirked, typing in the passcode for Grimm's door.

Grimm smiled a little. "Ah, thanks. But... Does this mean that they're going to try to bring it out again?"

"They'll bide their time for a while, and next thing you know, there's been be an accident and your friend ended up dead." Her smile vanished as she opened the door for him. "It's happened before and they won't hesitate to do it again. I'll keep an eye on them though."

Grimm felt sick to his stomach again. "Please don't let them." He said softly, voice almost cracking. If anything happened to Kyn he'd never forgive himself. "Wait, a question; bending isn't illegal, is it? Since it's not technically magic?"

"I got your back, don't worry about the little pipsqueak. Seriously, what is he, 12?" She chuckled. "But no, bending is fine. Well, not blood bending, but you get my drift there."

"He's 21, thank you very much." Grimm almost snapped. He softened quickly. "Ah, okay. Good. They're safe, then... I hope Coby's alright." He was muttering to himself now, so he looked up and shook his head. "Sorry. But thanks for everything."

"Oooh, someone's obsessive over their boyfriend." She winked, shooing him inside. "Yeah, no prob. I'll be back with food in a few hours!" She promised, shutting the door.

Grimm rolled his eyes, slumping against the wall again. He was tired. Letting his eyes shut, he curled up and fell asleep within minutes, his nightmares the only thing keeping him company.

A few hours later, Irene came back with a tray, this time with soup and bread. "Dude, Grimm you gotta hear this." She snorted, kicking the door shut.

Grimm sat up suddenly, forehead covered in a thin coat of sweat. He wiped it away. "Huh? What happened?" He asked sleepily, grabbing the bread.

"So we go back into your friend's room there- Kyna-something, right? And the whole back wall and the floor- covered in plants. The scientists /flipped/! You should've seen their faces, it was a freaking forest in there. And the kid's just out cold on the ground. They gave him a little cast, don't worry." She laughed, discarding the clipboard onto the ground. "They gotta move him, though. Somewhere more reinforced so it doesn't happen again. A few floors down, maybe."

"Alright, then... I don't think it's very good for him to be away from plant life, though. That's what's worrying me now..." He grimaced. "When are they gonna take us out again?"

"Huh? Why?" She frowned, cocking her head. "And about a week or so. They gotta run some psyche tests and stuff. DNA evaluation or whatever. They haven't seen someone who can banish people into books and apparently has a mean ass temper before, and it's been a while since they've had some kind of avian in here."

"Oh, okay. That would make sense." He nodded, leaning on his side on the wall as he sat, eating the bread. "I was just wondering. I'm not really looking forward to them trying to piss me off again. They must all have death wishes." There. He'd said it.

"If it's as horrible as you make it out to be, yeah I guess so. Your boyfriend didn't seem bothered, but he said he couldn't tell me. He called you... what was it? Mu.. muthsera?" She shrugged. "Well, like I said, I'm working on it. Don't worry."

Grimm nodded. "Alright, cool." He sighed. "Can I just say how glad I am they have someone as decent as you working here?"

"You guys need someone who thinks this whole ban on magic thing is bullshit here. And you didn't deny iiiit~" She grinned, poking him in the arm. "How old even are you?"

"27," he told her. "And of course I didn't deny it." He muttered, rolling his eyes. "No part of that statement was false."

"Aw!" Irene squeaked. "That's cute. Okay, moving on then." She gave something to him, a crumbled up piece of paper and picked up the mostly empty try. "A map, for when you get out." She grinned, standing. "I'll see you in a while, Slender."

Grimm stared at the piece of paper, confused for a moment. Then he smiled. "You keep alternating between calling me Grimm and Slender!" he called after her. "Make up your mind!"

"Don't tell me what to do!" She yelled back, shutting the door and giggling as she walked back down the hall, clipboard tucked under her arm.

Grimm chuckled, finishing his food. Once that was done, he pushed the tray away and decided to fiddle with his gun for a while before meditating.

A week of rather annoying tests came by before Irene returned, looking a little worried. "Okay, so good news is they're leaning towards sending you off to the war and not into the euthanasia chambers. Bad news, your boyfriend's sick. They're not really sure what's wrong with him either. Plus, they think he's some sort of time-traveller, thanks to the DNA scans, he's nearly 800 years old. Definitely not 21. Care to explain?"

Grimm put a hand to his forehead. "He's 21 in physical age, sorry. But he was unconscious for a good 700 years or so. I don't really want to go into detail, it would take a while to explain. And he;s sick because he's not near any nature. He needs to be near plant life, Irene. He'll die down there." He looked at her sternly.

"That's not really something I can control." She said apologetically. "Which means we'll have to speed this up, and that means this will get sloppy and we'll probably all die. But, y'know, gotta think on the bright side then." She gave a fake cheer. "So, you'll pretty much know when this is going down. Trust me. Still got that map?"

Grimm nodded and pulled it from his pocket. "Right here."

"Good, good." She stood, flattening out her dress. "Deep breaths, then. Just a few days more."

**_[Timeskip_**_**]**_

Grimm woke up with a very small headache, but nothing that really bothered him. He pushed himself off the ground and immediately felt for the paper in his pocket, making sure it was still there. After sitting and waiting for a moment, he began to wonder where Irene was. He wandered over to the door and hissed her name.

The door swung open, but it wasn't Irene that entered. The man with the glasses swept briskly in, dragging Kyn behind him. The door shut and locked with a click. "Good evening subject #2273, you remember subject #2274 and I, yes?" He grinned, flashing small pointed teeth. "Good. Today will be for private entertainment, doesn't that sound nice? Since you're so confident that this rage of yours can't come out." He smiled pleasantly, shoving the dull-eyed brunette to his knees. "And don't even think of trying to kill me. Only my password opens this door and I happen to know about your friend's sickness. And I know it'll only get worse the longer he's here. So let's not make a fuss, hm?"

Grimm hissed, "I can't help it if I kill you, it's not my fucking choice." He stepped forward, looking at Kyn. "Kyn? Kyn, are you okay?" He asked, knowing the question was stupid. "God, I'm sorry..."

"We'll see about that. And you may address me as Seta, thank you." The reptilian like man said briskly, tugging at the short male's almost black locks. Said man looked up, giving a weak smile. "Fine." He shivered a little in the warm air, skin looking almost blue-ish in tint. "Pneumonia. Nasty thing, isn't it?" Seta smirked, tugging on the gray-ish feathers, looking bored.

"Don't touch him!" Grimm hissed. "What the hell is your problem? Do you actually enjoy this? We didn't do anything wrong!"

"I do, actually." Seta grinned widely. "And I don't think you're in any position to tell me what I can't do to the little rat." He raked a clawed hand through the feathers, tearing open the skin underneath and making Kyn shudder but do nothing. "You're both abominations," he clipped one claw along the man's jawline, "I'm an abomination." He moved his head down, digging them into his shoulder. "And I'll put down as many of us as I can." He shoved the man away for a moment, walking up to Grimm. "No need for taint in the human race, hm?"

Grimm's eyes were wide and his fists were clenched at his sides now. "Just let him go. You don't want me getting mad."

"I do, though." Seta smiled, eyes wide and insane, gripping Grimm's shoulders with his claws until he bled. "Show me what's lurking behind that human exterior. What will it take, hm?" He pushed away to kneel in front of Kynareth. "Mutilation?" He grabbed the man's face. "A physical impairment?" With one swift motion, they raked down the left side of the winged man's face from his forehead to his jaw. "I can do both." Seta released him, standing slowing while Kyn gripped his eye with little whimpers. "Or perhaps, even that is not enough?" His grin grin impossibly wide.

Grimm sneered, hands on the door now. He was already starting to lose it. His teeth were sharpening and his throat burned, "Please!" he almost begged, but it came out as a snap. "Don't do this to yourself. Leave the man alone."

"Better!" Seta cheered with a laugh. "But not quite." He nearly skipped to stand behind Kyn, wrapping his hands around the man's small neck. "What shall I do, then? A little twist? A nice cut to paint the floor red? Yes, yes white is so boring anyway, don't you agree?" He giggled, digging them in to slice the skin open. Kyn still had his one eye covered, but the other was fixed closed in pain. He still wouldn't say a word. "What do you say to that, Grimm?" Seta looked up at the man. "Wanna hear him scream?"

"I said not to fucking touch him!" The man behind the door growled, an animilistic noise being torn from his throat. His vision suddenly went red. This was happening to fast; much too fast. At this rate, he'd be transforming into the reaper, too. His skin was already turning red and he could feel his pulse in his temples. "You get the hell away from him!" Oh, no... There was that change in voice.

"There we are~!" Seta sighed, resting his head on Kyn's bloody shoulder. "Isn't that lovely?" He smiled. "Quite worth the wait. Oh well, no need for you anymore." He shoved his claws through the brunette's ribs and let him fall to the ground before standing to brush himself off, only smearing blood on his clothes. He paced around Grimm and the skin darkened to red and took an emaciated form, eyes glowing. "Oh yes, so worth it."

When Grimm saw Seta slice his claws into Kynareth's ribs, he lost it. A maniacle laughter bubbled from his lips, head lolling backwards. His clothing phased into his skin, his claws lengthened and sharpened, and fire practically flowed from his eyes. He took on the form of the dog-based demon, hair growing and turning black as he laughed hysterically, that high pitched voice turning deep and demonic. "You really are a fool!" It spoke, completely transformed now and grinning down at Seta. "I've never met anyone as stupid as you." He laughed.

"Oh, just a little morbid curiosity." Seta smiled, flashing teeth as scales rippled beneath his skin again. "But at last we meet. A separate entity too, how fascinating." He folded his hands behind his back. "What is your connection to them, I wonder? Surely you know."

"I will not tell you anything," the Demon growled. "Give me the boy and you will not be harmed." It spoke dangerously, but carefully.

"He's dead." Seta spat, flicking his wrist over to the motionless figure on the floor. "Why do you care, anyway? He's just another monster mutt." The man's lip curled. "But you're something else completely. Why waste your time with these mortals?"

The Demon's head snapped over to look at Kynareth and something that sounded almost like a whimper was torh from his throat. "He is not dead," the Demon barked, snarling. "He will not die!"

"So angel boy had the big bad demon trained, didn't he? Should've known." Seta clicked his tongue in disapproval. "You should be thankful I cut your leash, demon. A little freedom never killed anyone. Oh, right." He snorted in laughter. "Maybe it did."

The Demon glared at Seta, his eyes flaring. Although Grimm was no longer conscious, the Demon still held feelings for Kyn, and this was becoming too much. "You will regret that decision." It said slowly. "He is not dead. He cannot be, nor will Slender let him be. /I/ will not let him be. And neither will Nakaru." He stared down at Seta, anger very nearly boiling to the breaking point.

"You should've thought about a week and a half ago." Seta sighed, looking unfazed by the demon's glowing yellow glare. "The fault is yours, really. I wasn't going to kill him, but you seemed to have left me no choice. Now his soul burns in Hell with the others," the reptilian's eyes stared triumphantly up at the Demon's, "And you have no one to blame but you." He thought for a moment. "And my claws. Always thirsting for blood."

"You," the Demon hissed. "You will regret this." He laughed, and suddenly, a bright light flashed. As it disappeared, a cloaked figure stood in place of the demon. His head was down, only able to see strands of sleek black hair hanging there. The cloak was bloody and torn, and the figure's hands were the same way, although you could see bits of his bones in them.  
"I'm sorry," he spoke in a calm, raspy voice. "You seem to be causing problems for my dear friend Slender. I won't tolerate anyone causing him as much harm as you have." He did not move his head.

"Harm?" Seta snorted. "I have done nothing to him." The man peered at him. "I only want to admire you. Death itself." He chuckled, pacing slowly. "Don't I feel special. Though, I thought you might have approved of my methods." He tsked.

"I care for only Slender. I kill whom he wants killed." He explained. "He did not want Kynareth killed, and he will not stand for it. I will not stand for it, either. Nazari may not care for Slender much, but I do." He paused. "Now, I grow tired of speaking. Any last words?"

Seta let his grin widen. "I've seen what I wanted, I got the outcome I desired. I only ask that you tell Slender this;" his voice went low but shook with barely contained glee, "Good luck on your own." His shoulders shook from the laughter that suddenly erupted from his throat.

Nakaru smirked beneath the hood, his head beginning to lift. It suddenly snapped up to reveal his glowing white eyes beneath long black hair. Within less than a second, Seta had blood pouring from almost every inch of his body, his skin slicing open.  
When he fell to the ground, Nakaru smirked again. "Nazari, you can come back, now." He said softly, his skin rippling to change into the Demon again. Nazari looked around quickly, then bashed open the door with one swift hit.

Nazari scooped up Kynareth in one hand and was about to go charging out when he heard footsteps, his head snapping in their direction. Irene and a man with short blonde hair stood there.  
"Oh my god," the man said. "It really is him." Nazari looked down and saw that the man was holding Grimm's book.  
"Who are you?" Nazari growled.  
"Xavier Huntback," the man answered.  
Nazari froze, then his muzzle pulled back in a grin. "Well, it's nice to see you again." He said sarcastically.

Irene was still trying to process between the towering demon and the blood and Seta's ripped up remains and Kynareth's lifeless form in said demon's hand. "You two know each other? That's... great." She said a little meekly. "How?"

Xavier sighed. "I'm Slender's father. And that," he pointed at Nazari, "is Slender's alter ego. But only part of it." He grimaced. "You missed the worst of it, thank goodness."  
"Are you two coming with or not?" Nazari interrupted. "I would like to help Kynareth before anything else occurrs."  
"Irene?" Xavier questioned. "You gonna come?"

"Yeah... Er, no. I gotta stay. Guards will be coming for you any second and someone has to explain this." She gestured to the bloody mess. "Oh, but you might want this," she held out Kyn's necklace, "if you still need it." She looked over at the blood again. "So, uh, best of luck to ya."

"Slender would like me to say thank you," Nazari said rather reluctantly. "He's being very annoying right now."  
"Don't let him back just yet," Xavier said, shaking Irene's hand before walking over to Nazari, who picked him up and set him on his back. "We need to get to wherever it is you're going quickly."  
"Enough talking, we're leaving." Nazari cast one last look at Irene before charging through the building, eventually ending up outside.

Irene watched them go, grinning. The sound of footsteps made her start and put on a surprised face for the guards. "Another breakout?" One sighed, staring at the broken door. "I told you, we can't hold them forever. So why don't you go put those two on your 'Do not go after again' list, hmm?" She smiled sweetly, walking back to her office.

Nazari looked around, then took off running into the city. He could literally pass through humans without being noticed seeing as he did not exist to them, so he made it to the alleyway quickly. Upon showing up, Rin, Lacy, and Nala all stood with mixtures of relief and shock on their faces.  
"Fix him," Nazari commanded, setting Kynareth down on the grass. There were no questions asked as Nala rushed forward, taking Kyn into her arms and bending the water around her hands. She set to work, healing and using the abilities she knew that would revive Kyn's life.

Kynareth remained mostly unconscious for it, occasionally aware enough to know something was going on and the air was different here. Familiar, even. After his physical injuries were taken care of, and he was thankful to breathe without blood bubbling up through his lungs that he was too weak to try and cough it out, his body was still wracked with shudders from the 5 day sickness. It would go away with time, he knew, but right now he could only strain his threadbare conscious to try and pick out Grimm's voice from the cacophony of sound.

"I'd get off, now," Nazari said, picking up Xavier and setting him on the ground. Rin and Lacy didn't bother asking who he was yet.  
"Goodbye, Nazari," Xavier smiled a little. The Demon nodded, and within moments, Grimm was lying on the ground unconscious as well. Xavier stumbled over to him, turning him over and brushing the hair from his eyes. "You've done well, Slender." He said quietly. He brought him over to lie next to Kynareth.

_**[Timeskip**__**]**_

Kyn finally felt his body tug him back into consciousness sometime later and a weak moan left his lips. He felt bone weary for some reason, and his head felt like it had been bashed in by an ogre. At least the chills were gone. He curled up a bit more, senses flooded with daylight despite the fact he hadn't opened his eyes to look around. He felt like he was laying down on something soft and warm, so he turned to bury his face in it, pushing aside his confusion for a while to just enjoy it.

Nala noticed the boy move on the bed, and she walked over with her water. Bending the water onto her hands again, she held them on the side of his head for a few moments to calm any activity in it that would cause him a worse headache than he already probably had. After she was done to that, she moved onto Grimm who was also half awake. Xavier, Rin, Lacy, and Coby sat in the corner of the room. They'd all been acquainted and introduced.

Kyn flinched at the touch, cracking one green eye open to look at her. Upon recognizing her face, he relaxed again. "Whr's Grimm?" He murmured, pushing himself up a little with his elbows. " 'N Seta?" He rubbed at his eyes to look around.

Nala raised an eyebrow, confused by the name. She looked at Rin, who in turn looked at Kyn confusedly. "Grimm's right next to you..." she said. "But who's Seta?" Grimm was still more asleep than awake at the moment, and he was perfectly fine with that.

The brunette looked over, humming a little at the sight of the man next to him before reaching over and taking his hand. "He was going to kill me, said our kind had to die." He shook his head a little, sifting through his foggy memory. "He was trying to make Grimm angry."

Rin looked over at Xavier. "Why didn't you tell me any of this?"  
He held his hands up. "Hey, I wanted to forget about it for a while."  
"Alright," Rin sighed. "He was trying to make Grimm angry, huh? Well, did he?"  
"Oh, he did." Xavier nodded. "Nakaru made an appearance. I wasn't there for that part, but Nazari always has this odd air about him when he's come back from being Nakaru." He explained.

Kyn looked over at him in puzzlement, not recognizing. He looked oddly familiar though. Still, he had to ask. "I do not recognize any Nazari or Nakaru. Who, may I ask, are they?"

"Nazari, my dear boy," Xavier smacked his lips together. "Is the Demon inside of Slender. Nakaru is the second half of his alter ego, the most dangerous. He cares for anyone that Slender cares for, however, so he is the most protective."

At that, a little light went off in his head. "Ah, Nazari is his name! I have met him." He smiled a little sadly. "He saved my life. And again, it seems, as well." His brow suddenly furrowed as he looked up at the man. "How do you know these things?"

Xavier hesitated. "You'll find out soon enough." His shoulders slumped a little bit. "And you've met Nazari before? How many times?"

"Just once." Kyn replied, glancing quickly over at the still mostly asleep man. "Though he did not seem very keen wanting to keep me around. I wonder what has changed." He said the last part to himself, tucking his wings up a little closer to himself.

"You've probably grown on him," Xavier told him. "You seem like a nice enough man, kind heart, determined. Someone with those qualities is likely to get through to Nazari. I never tried, though."  
"Hang on, hang on," Lacy said, looking at Coby. "Can you see his wings or anything?"  
"He has wings?" Coby asked, fiddling with the gold chain around his neck and opening and closing the heart clasped on the end of it.  
"Thought so." Lacy giggled.  
"Ah, hang on." Xavier stood up and searched for a writing utensil, finding a pen and drawing a simple circle with four lines in the middle of it. He walked back over to Coby and held his hand up. "Look at this." Coby stared at his hand in curiosity, yelping when Xavier suddenly clapped both his hands together in front of the boy's face. "There. Now, can you see his wings?" Coby blinked and shook his head, almost dizzy. He looked at Kyn.  
"Ooooh, yeah." He nodded, eyebrows raised.

Kyn tilted his head, but smiled. "Lah aak (Magic guide)." He said in an awed voice. "I have not scene such an act since my work for Lady Kyne. It is.." he scratched his head for a moment, thinking back on when he first met Grimm and they word he used to describe his wings. "Sick!" He nodded happily to himself.

Rin held in her laughter, Lacy giggled, and Xavier smiled. "Thank you," he said.  
"Mmm..." Grimm stirred beside Kynareth, turning so his head was pressed against his side. "Kyn?" his eyes were still closed.

The brunette tightened his grip on the other's hand. "I am here." He brushed the feathers of his right wing over Grimm's cheek lightly and smiled.

Grimm opened his eyes slowly, vision blurry. "You're okay? What the hell happened..." He stared at his and Kyn's intertwined hands for a moment, trying to remember everything. He remembered up until... Oh. That's what happened. "Did I... Did I kill Seta?"

"I do not know what became of him." Kyn's smile fell. "He was alive when I lost conscious, but... Talos forgive me, he deserved to die for his crimes." He seemed a little unhappy with saying it so bluntly, but his eyes were fixed with disgust. "He was so cruel..."

"He was perhaps one of the worst men I've ever met, yes," Xavier muttered. Grimm didn't move for a moment, his brow furrowed.  
A few seconds later, however, he lifted his head and sat up, looking over at the man across the room. He narrowed his eyes, confused, then his face twisted into a mixed expression of shock, anger, and relief. "No way."  
"Slender..." Xavier stared at him, his voice weak. He did not move. Grimm's grip on Kynareth's hand tightened.

At their stares, and the fact he heard the man called Grimm what Nazari called him, Kyn glanced at the two, eyes flicking between their faces. His mouth formed a little 'o'. "You are kin?" He attempted.

Xavier hesitated before nodding. "I am... Slender's father." He confirmed, looking back at Grimm. "Slender, before you-"  
"What the hell?" Grimm said in a voice a little above a whisper. "What the /hell/ are you doing here?"  
"It's a long story, Slender, maybe I can-"  
"No, no! What the fuck?" He straightened himself out even though his whole body was stiff and stood up. "Did you know anything about this?" He asked Kyn. "Oh, of course you didn't." He rolled his eyes at himself.

He still shook his head in denial, looking a little hurt. "Perhaps it is in your best interest to listen? He is still your father, even after all this time." He had pushed the blankets off of his lap by now, just sitting with his legs folded to the side. "He offers explanation."

Grimm reminded himself to mentally smack himself for offending Kyn later.  
"I know he wants to explain, but he just... You left mom and I when I was 7, you asshole! You didn't even tell me why!" He was yelling now, angry, but not nearly angry enough to transform.  
"And I'm about to tell you why, so shut up!" Xavier snapped back, causing Grimm to flinch and take a step back. Xavier softened. "Sorry. That was uncalled for." He sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "I... I left you because I wanted to find something that would get rid of Nazari and Nakaru, Slender. But-"  
"Wait, who?" Grimm asked, confused.  
"Even after all this time, you still don't know the names of your own inner demons?" Xavier shook his head. "I went to try and find something to get rid of them, and failed miserably. I was unable to locate you and your mother again. But... I was captured by the men who took you and Kynareth and was put to use in their facility."

Kyn gave a little frown, looking down. He might've tried asking, again, but decided to keep quiet for now. It was not his business to know. Still, he couldn't help but feeling a little sad at that. Getting rid of Nazari and Nakaru? He may have not have seen Nakaru, but he owed Nazari his life. However, the two probably caused more problems than help. And if he had not been there, perhaps this whole unpleasant experience would've been avoided. Then again, Grimm's dad... He pursed his lips, staring into his lap.

Grimm stared at his father, breathing hard. He could hardly believe what he was hearing. "You couldn't have /told/ me that?" He yelled, and before anyone could stop him, he sent his fist sailing into his father's jaw. Xavier fell backwards onto his butt, hand on his face and staring up at Grimm with wide eyes. Grimm suddenly smiled. "/Damn/ that felt good!"  
"I deserved that." Xavier shrugged, standing up again. Grimm turned to look at Kynareth.  
"I'm sorry," he said, knowing that Kyn probably disapproved of his actions. "I had to do it. It was killing me."

The brunette gave a weak laugh. It seems family dynamics had changed very much as well, as he had seen with Coby. If only he could remember his own father's face, instead of just sandy blonde hair and calloused hands. He remember when he was still very young that once his father held up his hands, saying he regretted that Kyn might not even get to have hands like his own. Experienced. Talented. His mother would shoo the man away, saying how of course he was, he couldn't be sick forever so don't worry about that. Kynareth smiled a little, rubbing his palm, before looking back up at Grimm and his father.

"Look, Slender, I'm sorry." Xavier said, putting a hand on his son's shoulder. "I thought I would be back in a short time... I was wrong, obviously. And I'm pretty sure that there's no way to get rid of Nazari and Nakura."  
"That's... That's fine. Honestly I'd rather keep them. They've saved Kyn twice now, and I'm pretty sure that the De- Nazari's got a thing for him now, too." He chuckled.

Kyn preened a little at that. "I do not really understand, though. He told me last time that he is not... overly fond of my presence." His shoulders shrugged casually. "I just wonder why he thinks different now. He very well just could have left."

"He probably got in touch with Nakaru or whatever his name is." Grimm shrugged. "Nakaru most likely convinced him that you were worth saving. That, and you probably got through to him." He smiled.

"Was it... oh. /Oh/." Kyn quickly ducked his head away, face flushing completely red. "I see. Well, I must thank him. Some time. And Nakaru if that is possible." He bit the edges of his fingers but hid a little smile. Everything just got more interesting by the day it seemed.

"Which reminds me," Grimm said. "I need to tell you something regarding them." He looked at his father, Coby, Rin, and Lacy. "Can you guys leave for a while? Go walk around town or something." He looked at his dad and quickly hugged him. "Thanks for coming back, though." His father smiled, and with that, they all climbed out the window.

The brunette snorted back a laugh. "And what is it I must know that requires everyone to be sent away with such haste?" He grinned, dropping his hand back into his lap.

"Well, regarding them leaving, I kinda just wanted to be alone with you." He smiled a little and sat down on the bed. "But I did want to tell you..." He trailed off for a second, cringing. "I /can/ willingly change into Nazari and Nakaru. I just... I didn't want them knowing that. But if I had... Maybe they wouldn't have hurt you." He pinched the skin on his hand out of habit.

"It is not worth them knowing." Kyn gave a little smile. "My life is not worth the three of yours. I should not even be here, or even made it passed 9 years of age. It is not worth them making you into some weapon for them to use for their own purposes." He grabbed the hand that was pinching the other and ran his fingers over the knuckles. "You must understand that."

Grimm let out a breath. "But..." His head fell forward onto Kynareth's shoulder. "Still. I would have preferred neither of us getting hurt." He chuckled a bit. "...You know, you can talk to them, if you'd like. I think Nakaru would especially like to speak to you, in all honesty."

"Would that not require a transformation and long rest period? It must be very stressful for you." Kyn murmured, but looked a little eager at the thought.

"It's different when I willingly change." Grimm explained. "I won't be as... insane when I go through the transformation. And I definitely won't be as tired. I'll be a little drowsy, but not 'I-need-to-sleep-right-this-instant' kind of tired."

Kyn gave a quick nod, unable to fight off the smile on his face. "If you are comfortable with allowing me the honor, then of course." He ran little circles over Grimm's palm absently, flapping his wings a bit.

Grimm smiled at the motions of his wings. Why was that so damn cute? "Alright, well..." He looked around. "The room should be big enough." He shrugged, backed up off the bed, and stood. "See you in a few," he grinned, then closed his eyes. Immediately his skin began changing, his clothes disappearing into said skin. A hiss was torn from his throat and his eyes snapped open to reveal that they were a bright yellow, but not flaming. He slowly evolved into Nazari, and when it was complete, the Demon stared down at Kynareth. "Aha, so he's decided to let me come out and play on his own, has he?" Nazari smirked.

"I wanted to talk." Kyn said simply, crossing his legs. "And thank you for earlier. What you did. I surely would not be alive without you there, and you did not simply leave me... so, thank you." He flashed a bright smile up at Nazari's tall form.

Nazari narrowed his eyes slightly, then turned his head away, a bit indignant. "Nakaru would have been furious with me if I had left you." After keeping his head turned away for a moment, he looked back. "I don't understand you."

"As I do not understand you." Kyn laughed, "But perhaps we may fix that. I owe you my life twice over, it is the least I could do. And perhaps I may return the favor for you? Perhaps not the life saving part, you are much stronger and more capable than I, but in any other way?" He babbled a little, grinning like a child.

"There is no way I wish to be repaid. I do not expect anything from you." He narrowed his eyes again skeptically and looked at Kynareth closely. "What I do not understand is why I am suddenly taken to you."

The man tilted his head to the side, loose brown curls brushing his shoulders. "I am curious to that as well. Last time you said that you were not in any way." He unfurled his wings a little more, stretching them out as they were stiff from being tucked up for so long. "I just... it was not only Nakaru, was it?"

"I am not entirely certain," the Demon shook his head. "Although we did have a small chat, I believe that it might be because Slender is practically 'in love' with you already." It was appear as if he were rolling his eyes.

He blushed again, rocking onto his butt and stretching his legs out. A little tint stayed behind, but the smile faded away. "I worry about that." He sighed and linked his fingers together, pulling at them. "I care for him very much, and for you and Nakaru as well, but I am not even from this time, and that he wants to stay with me of all people..." Kyn sighed, dropping his hands. "I do not believe I am worth that. And.." He looked up, a little meekly. "You think this to be true as well?"

Nazari let out a sigh/growl. "Although it is not in my nature to say this, my thoughts on you have changed. You are worth it, whether I want to think so or not, I'm stuck thinking that you are. Slender knows you are, as well as Nakaru."

"But I have not even met Nakaru." Kyn pointed out, getting to his feet so his was almost eye level with Nazari's hunched form. "But I do thank you for that. I.." He held his hand out a little uncertainly. "If I may...?"

Nazari blinked, hesitant at first. Then he leaned forward slowly and nodded. "If you wish."

Kyn beamed and placed a hand on Nazari's cheek through the unruly black strands of hair. "Your eyes are very pretty." He murmured, brows furrowed. "A very unusual eye colour, like Grimm's own. It is quite beautiful." He smiled again. "I am honored to be able to know you. Grrrrr- Slender, Nakaru and yourself." With his other hand, he tugged at his own hair in an embarrassed manner.

Nazari kept his eyes on Kynareth, just barely leaning into the contact. "Although I'm still distressed over this new-found attraction towards you," Nazari smirked. "I am honored to know you as well."

He squeaked in delight at the approval, wings fluttering a bit. "I thank you. I will try to be too distressing." He very lightly pecked Nazari's muzzle, unbothered by the leathery texture or jutting bones.

Nazari's eye twitched, something in his mind overtaking him and causing him to lean forward and lap his tongue at Kyn's neck once before freezing and pulling back slightly. "... Damn Slender."

Kyn giggled at the gesture. "You cannot blame him for everything." He let his arm fall back to his side as Nazari pulled away from him. "I am very appreciative to you."

Nazari grumbled something under his breath and cast a glance at Kynareth. "Would you like to speak with Nakaru, now?"

Kyn nodded. "I suppose I will see you later, then?" He asked.

"Possibly, yes." Nazari nodded back. "Goodbye for now." He grinned, and then a glowing white light seemed to emanate from him. It flashed, and suddenly Nakaru was standing there in front of Kynareth. He looked a bit different than last time, though; no blood on his cloak or hands and his eyes, instead of being nothing but white, had red irises.  
"Ah, Kynareth," he smiled from underneath the hood, black hair flopping front of his eyes. "It is wonderful to finally meet you."

"It is very nice to meet you as well, Nakaru." Kyn gave a little bow after hopping off the bed. "Nazari seems to like you." He quirked his lips into a smile at the cloaked figure.

"Yes," Nakaru smiled. "He and I are very close. Although Slender is not very fond of us, I am quite fond of Slender and anyone he cares for. And Nazari." He chuckled. "I had a small talk with Nazari as he probably told you. I think it might have gotten through to him a bit."

"So he has said." Kynareth nodded. "I do have to wonder why that is. We have never met before now, and yet you feel an attachment to me. Is it that you are aware of Grimm's life even when he is not transformed?"

"I am," Nakaru nodded. "Nazari is not for whatever reason," he waved a dismissive hand. "I care for you as strongly as Slender does. It is something I cannot control, but I do not mind it." He smiled, cocking his head.

Kyn felt colour flood his cheeks again at Nakaru's words. "I... surely there have been others? Before Slender? It is clear to me that you are all separate entities, yet all parts to a whole, in a way. I was curious if you Nazari existed before Slender did. You do not have to answer," he said quickly, "it is just a wonder."

"We have only been around for as long as Slender has. We grow as he grows. When he was a child, I was a child as well," Nakaru sauntered a bit closer, just to move around a bit. "There has only been that one other man," he said. "But I could tell that Slender was not... Enjoying him. He thought he liked him. He did not. And he did not want to hurt him." The cloaked man shrugged. "But Slender has a very strong attraction towards you, bordering on love. I assume it will only be a matter of time until he is, in fact, in love with you."

"I still, even now, find that hard to believe. To be one day forbid from any relationship at all, and the next, 700 years later, to find someone that makes me want to throw away the very thing that saved my life for one man... It is a difficult transaction." Kyn laughed a little to himself. "And despite us being with each other, I have not told him a thing about me... perhaps then he would rethink his choice, if he has not seen it already." He looked a little meekly up at Nakaru. "I am unsuitable."

"I fail to see how you are unsuitable." Nakaru furrowed his brow, cocking his head again.

"I am vulnerable. I can be hurt easily because I will not fight back, and others will always look to exploit that weakness to get to you and Nazari. I cannot heal like Lady Nala or bend Earth to my will like Lady Rin, it is unintentional. Uncontrollable without that crystal. I am sick." Kyn sighed, a little defeated. "Every day until the day I die, I will be sick. Protected only by Nature's embrace. It will hold it off for as long as I am in contact with it." He shook his head a little. "The way the world is now only makes it worse. He should not be attached to someone who can be taken away so easily."

Nakaru sighed. "Slender does not care about those things. What matters to him is that he matters to you. You care about him. You want him. You want to keep him safe. That is all that matters in the end to Slender. And if he has to die to save you, he will." Nakaru smiled warmly. It was a bit odd seeing that kind of smile on him. "And I am willing to do the same, as is Nazari."

Kyn looked a little stunned for a moment and rubbed at his eyes when they watered up a little. "For him to be content for just that... I wonder how most start families on less." He gave a little disbelieving laugh, scrubbing away tears as they threatened to roll down his cheeks and staring at the floor. "It has always been what you had or what you can do in my society."

"People rely on feelings these days," Nakaru shrugged. "Well, there are arranged marriages in some countries, but for the most part in the United States people get married because they want to... Sometimes." He shook his head. "Are you /crying/?" A laugh bubbled from his lips. "How cute," he was suddenly in front of him, a finger held underneath his chin. "You know, Slender is actually quite conscious right now. He may not be able to control me, but he is able to feel and see and hear everything I do."

Kyn blinked in shock for a moment at the sudden shift of movement. "He is for you, but not for Nazari?" He asked, eyes flicking from Nakaru's finger up to his brilliant red eyes. His cheeks flushed a little at their proximity, but it wasn't noticeable from the one that appeared from the sudden tears.

"He is because I am very similar to Slender. I care about people, I do have human emotions, I am just dangerous." He trailed that finger down Kyn's neck.

"O-oh." Kyn watched as he did that with wide, and a little confused, eyes. "Wheras Nazari is incapable of such things?" That was a little sad, to be mostly rage and destruction most of the time, but he did show some feeling earlier.

"Nazari is... Complicated. He feels less emotion than I do, but instead has a mind all his own, although Slender is able to get through to him when transformed at some points." His finger stopped on his chest, then his whole hand flattened on it, his eyes glued to it. "You have a very light heartbeat." He stated distractedly.

"Weak heart, if that is what you are refering to." Kynareth placed his own hands on top of Nakaru's. "An issue I have had since I was a child. But, um..." he looked at their hands and up at Nakaru's face, framed by the hood. "I suppose there could be other reasons why it would, uh, feel like that." And there he went, babbling off about something or other that was probably no relation to what was happening.

Nakaru nodded. "I see," he chuckled. "Mine has always been abnormally fast. It feels like... Fluttering, almost." His other hand went to his own chest, still staring at Kyn's and his hands. They were very close at this point, but Nakaru didn't mind.

Kyn inched a little closer to feel the robed man's heart pounding rapidly beneath his palm. "Surely that cannot be healthy either, though I know that you are not like a normal person." He smiled a bit. "When I was allowed to be outside, my mother would always warn me of what we'd call Tholos's Wolves. They were bigger and had much stronger senses than normal wolves. My father said the wolves would not hear such a light heart, and I would make a great Hunter, if I ever had the strength to draw a bow." He chuckled a little to himself.

Nakaru smiled. "You are strong. Perhaps not physically, but you are strong." He looked up at Kyn, their noses suddenly touching. "I have to wonder if Slender would disapprove of this." A chuckle bubbled from his lips, but suddenly he opened his mouth and Grimm's voice came from it, a smug expression on his face. "Bro, you're me. I'm feeling everything you are, so go right the fuck ahead." He shook his head, and Nakaru blinked. "I hate it when he does that."

"Eeh?" Kyn quirked his head at them. "He can hear- oh, right, of course he can." He looked like he wanted to smack himself. "Hello Grimm!" He clutched Nakaru's hand and beamed.

"He says hi," Nakaru smiled. "It feels rather odd when he takes over, though." He shook his head, then gazed at Kynareth again, faces very close. He hovered his lips over Kyn's, grinning.

Kyn gawked a little up at him, lips parted and suddenly his tongue felt clumsy again. Whether it was Grimm or Nazari or Nakaru, he always fell short of what to say. He could talk with some stranger for hours about whatever came to mind, but with him and his demons, his tongue would suddenly tie itself in knots and his face would burn whenever their skin touched and he could go on this internal tangent for hours but Nakaru was staring down at him with a grin and he couldn't think of a single thing to say.

Nakaru liked the way Kynareth was reacting, a smirk gracing his face. "You're very cute." He said, "Slender is indeed lucky." His lips barely brushed over Kyn's before pressing to them completely.

He almost immediately melted into the familiarity of the kiss, one arm looping around Nakaru's shoulders. "Does that not count you as well?" He questioned against the dark haired man's lips. He felt almost claimed by the three of them, more or less with Nazari. The thought was not bothering at all, in fact, it was quite the opposite.

"Slender should be enjoying this thoroughly, actually," Nakaru replied, a hand snaking it's way around Kyn's waist and pulling their hips close. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss, tongue slipping out a bit.

Kyn matched the move, swiping his tongue across Nakaru's bottom lip then twining the two's together. "That is good." He smiled, closing his eyes and leaning foreword, unintentionally grinding their hips together.

"Hmm," Nakura hummed. "Aha," a chuckle escaped his lips against Kyn's. "Slender would like to know if you would repay him for last time."

"N-now?" Kyn flushed a little brighter. "I... That is okay with me if it with you two." he nodded.

Nakaru grinned, pulling back bit. He stared at KYn from underneath his black hair. "Slender literally feels everything I do when he calls on me willingly. You are basically with him in my mind. He can feel you and see you and hear you. And right now, he's telling you it's fine."

"Very well." Kyn backed him up to sit on the bed so he could bring himself to his knees. "Please inform me is I commit error." He smiled a little.

Nakaru nodded, still grinning.

The brunette hummed, unbuckling the fastening on the pants and dragging them down. Once they were out of the way enough, he took Nakaru's length in his hand and trailed his tongue down the underside, flicked in over the tip, then dragged it down again slowly. He worked a little slow and hesitant, occasionally ghosting his teeth over sensitive areas he remembered from when Grimm did it to him.

Nakaru held his breath in order to suppress a moan, but with Slender making the sudden obnoxious groaning noise in his head, he couldn't help it. He immediately arched his hips upward in response and gasped, Nakaru himself definitely not being used to this kind of stimulation.

Kyn kept up with the seemingly tortuously light swipes and scrapes and teasing touches. One hand absently massaged the inside of Nakaru's thigh while the other rested on his waist. With one more swipe, he moved up to suck gently on the head, tongue grazing over the tip.

Nakaru hissed, gritting his teeth together. He ran a hand through Kynareth's hair absently, pale face a bit flushed and his heart rate going even faster so it was practically vibrating in his chest. He accidentally thrust his hips upward, only seeking more as Grimm almost commanded his movements.

Kyn sucked in a breath and engulfed his rather impressive size in completely with his mouth, tongue pressed flat against the bottom of it. He repeated the actions a few times, sometimes grazing teeth over the head and sucking more. With all the little noises he was hearing from Nakaru, he guessed he was doing alright. He hummed a little as he swallowed him down again.

Nakaru's breath caught in his throat just before he let out a loud moan, throwing his head back, the hood falling from it. His black hair tickled the back of his now naked neck and he could hear Grimm panting in his head. With his hand on the back of Kyn's head, he encouraged him to keep going, unbearably close to the edge.

The brunette obliged, quickening his pace and groaning a little around him and tightening his hold around Nakaru's waist.

With Grimm's noises becoming more and more erotic and Nakaru's own voice bursting from his throat in loud groans and pants, he finally lost it. His body tensed and he shuddered, breath catching in his throat once again as his eyes screwed shut and he gripped Kynareth's hair. His hold loosened and he let go. "Shit," Grimm's voice came from Nakaru's mouth. "You really came through." Nakaru shook his head and looked at Kynareth. "I agree with Slender," he chuckled, eyes half-lidded.

Kyn pulled back and licked his lips, looking up at Nakaru, hearing Grimm's voice. Got to get used to that, he reminded himself. "I am glad you thought it enjoyable." He smiled, standing to stretch.

Nakaru grinned. "Yes, well..." He stood as well, fixing the robe and putting the hood back up. "I suppose I should let Slender back now. He's getting impatient." Without letting Kynareth reply, he walked forward, smashed his lips to the other man's for a moment, and the next thing Kyn knew, the white light flashed and he was kissing Grimm. Immediately Grimm slunk to the ground, breathing hard. "God, it feels weird to do that."

Immediately, Kyn made a move to catch him, dropping onto his knees as well. "The transformation itself or the, uh..." he flushed a little "other stuff?"

"The transformation." Grimm chuckled. "I've only willingly changed twice. All other times I'm not conscious during the transformations." His head rested on Kyn's shoulder. "The other stuff was /great/."

"Oh." The brunette gave a little chuckle and ran his fingers through Grimm's hair. "I should let you rest, then." He offered to carry him up to the bed.

"No, no," Grimm chuckled. "I'm fine. I'll just be a little drowsy for a few."  
"HEY YOU GUYS."  
"Oh, right on time..." Grimm rolled his eyes. "Whaddya want?" He stood.  
"Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you're still guys." Rin poked her head in the window.  
"Did someone give her a lot of sugar?" Grimm sighed.  
"I'm sorry," Xavier said. "I had no idea."

"Sugar?" Kynareth looked up over at the window. "Is that not unhealthy in large quantities?" He questioned, looking between the two. "And is it not a very expensive ingredient?'

"It's not expensive these days, more or less." Xavier said. "And it's unhealthy, but I think Rin will end up burning it off..."  
"CAN I HAVE COFFEE-"  
"No."  
"WHY NOT?"  
"Because you're already-"  
"YOU DUMBSHIT I WANT COFFEE AND I GET WHAT I WANT WHETHER IT BE A BALLOON FILLED WITH KOALAS OR COFFEE."  
"You're not having coffee!"  
"I DO WHAT I WANT." Rin laughed and suddenly disappeared into the alleyway.

"And what, pray tell, is a balloon and a koala? And coffee?" Kyn muttered, but mostly to himself. "Should we perhaps go after her?"

"A balloon," Coby said, slipping into the room. "Is a floatation device people use to fly. Koala's are animals that live in trees, to put it simply, and coffee is a caffeinated beverage that people drink to stay awake for longer periods of time." He walked over to the square sitting on the table and opened it to reveal it was a laptop, then looked back at Grimm and Kyn, flushing slightly. "Sorry, I get... Nerdy."

"People fly?" Kyn blinked, crawling over to inspect the device Coby brought in. "What is this small... somewhat rectangular device?" He squinted at it, not seeing anything very remarkable about it.

Coby stared at Kyn, well, his wings, the blinked. "Oh, it's my solar laptop. Gets its power from the sun." He smiled a little. "It's fully powered right now. Open it up, turn it on, and you can search the internet to find anything you need to know. Except I already know most things. And you can't always rely on the internet." He pressed a button, the screen flickering to life.  
"Ah," a calm voice came from the laptop. "Any particular reason you have moved me to the laptop, sir- Oh, change in location, I see?"  
"And that's CAI." Coby told Grimm and Kyn. "He's an invention of mine. As well as this laptop." Grimm's jaw dropped in shock.

"Buh?" Kyn said eloquently, words like 'internet' and 'laptop' and the whole concept, really, flying over his head. "It is... an archieve?" He struggled with the definition for a moment, and then a voice spoke out. "Ahh!" He jumped a little like he had when they first went to the movies, but there it was loud and seemed to be coming from /everywhere/. "It speaks! Is this another movie?" He scooted a little closer, almost falling on Coby's lap.

Grimm and Coby both laughed at his reaction, and Coby was honestly surprised with himself for being able to laugh. "It's not a movie, no. CAI is my A.I. system. Artificial intelligence. I put up little speakers around the room for his voice to emanate from. I created him when I was 15. Wanna see something else?" Coby liked these two; they were funny. He could feel himself loosening up.

"You have created this?" Kynareth's eyes were wide with shock. "How are you not widely renowned for such a device? Surely it deserves much attention!" His eyes raked eagerly over the laptop, taking in the ports and lights and buttons.

"I don't want attention from people." Coby shrugged. "I don't really like attention. I've always been better off alone." He dug around in his jacket pocket before pulling out a small metal ball and handing it to Kyn. Grimm peered over his shoulder curiously.  
"What's that?" he asked.  
"Alright, keep your hand still. No matter what. I don't want you dropping it." Coby said sternly. "Dummy, wake up!"  
The little ball began unfolding, shape-shifting to take the shape of a smaller than palm-sized metal cat. It stretched, yawning. "Mmm... Coby!" it chirped.

Kyn gave a delight squeal, holding the little palm sized animal. "Most delightful feline!" He cooed at it, wings flapping on their own accord. "Where did you find this delightful creature?"

Dummy turned around, tail swishing, to see Kyn staring at him. Dummy's high pitched chirping voice sounded from his mouth, "Coby made me!" he smiled, rubbing his head and ears on Kynareth's palm. "CAI's my brother. But he's a lot smarter than me." The metal cat suddenly began folding and unfolding again to take the shape of a young human boy, still palm-sized. "I can turn into a human and any animal I want to!"  
Coby watched this with amusment, giggling a little. Grimm was smiling in awe.

Kyn let out another cooing noise at the new form. He gently set the boy down on the table because his hands were literally shaking at the amount of adorable. "Coby, this is most impressive." He put his hand on his mouth in awe. "I cannot even begin to understand it."

"No one can, really," Coby shrugged.  
"How fucking smart /are/ you?" Grimm gawked.  
"I have an I.Q. of 204." He deadpanned, being completly serious.  
"Well then," Grimm huffed. "Touchy touchy."  
Dummy giggled and turned into a bat, flying up onto Grimm's head. He traveled down to his shoulders where he rubbed against Grimm's neck before hopping onto Kyn's shoulders and doing the same as a cat. "Coby has friends now? I'm glad. His dad scared me. And so did his mom." Coby glared at Dummy.

Kyn cocked his head. "IQ? This is a good thing?" He gave a little delighted squeak when Dummy leapt onto his shoulders. "Oh, yes I have heard of the suffrage at the hand of his guardians. It is most saddening, but we will not allow it to happen again." He gave a bright, reassuring smile and stroked Dummy.

Coby shrugged. "Thanks. They weren't the best parents. And it really means a lot that you're... You're here for me." He looked down, blushing a little.  
"He likes you guys." Dummy grinned. "That's really good."

"It is because... we are friends, yes? And it is what they do for each other?" Kyn asked, a little uncertain. He'd only done his duty as a Guardian to followers of the Gods, and their contact was never lasting.

Coby nodded. "I suppose. I've only ever had one friend, so... Yeah. I guess." His mouth twitched upward into a smile. "Dummy, come on. You can stay up for a while and talk to CAI, but only until I go to bed, okay?"  
"M'kay," Dummy nodded, hopping off of Kyn's shoulder and flying to the table.  
"Oh, Kyn, wanna see a koala?" Coby chuckled.  
Dummy beamed and transformed into one, looking up at Kynareth.

"It is pudgy and adorable." He cooed, poking Dummy's stomach gently. "Where can I see such a wonderful creature?" He grinned, admiring the small gray animal. "Do they live here? How big are they?"

"They don't live here," Coby shook his head. "They live in another country, Australia." He explained. "They're about... yay big," he gestured with his hands. "The males are normally larger than females, though."

"Aus-trail-a?" The brunette hummed at the name. "It sounds lovely. We used to have these creatures that lived in the North by Bruma where the weather was always cold that had shaggy grey coats like this. They lived in the mountain crevices. They were not very nice, however." Kyn gave a nervous laugh. "They are also very big. And have three eyes."

"Hard to believe those kinds of things existed." He glanced at Kyn's wings. "Er, exist. I've based my whole life on science and- never mind. But you having wings and him turning into a huge demon shouldn't be possible." He shook his head. "I guess you really do learn something new everyday."

"We also had dragons, like Alduin, Paarthurnax, Odahviing, and Durnehviir. They lived in the harsher lands of Skyrim, however, and I have only seen them twice in all my life. Lady Kyne used to meet with them to seek knowledge, like most do. Odahviing once visited us, he was very nice." Kynareth smiled fondly. "It is sad that such abundant creatures have vanished over time."

"I think it'd be awesome to see a dragon," Coby almost beamed. "I know I just said that I've based my whole life on science, but I've always thought that dragons existed at one time or another. I love dragons."

"Most were not friendly at all. Dragon attacks on major towns were not uncommon there." He said thoughtfully. "There were some who could call upon a dragon to aid them, usually Paarthurnax or Odahviing. It was very uncommon though." He shrugged a little offhandedly and flopped onto Grimm's lap. "And there were also the Daedric Princes." He gave a shudder.

Grimm smiled as Kyn flopped into his lap. "I love hearing about all the stuff from your time. It's really kind of fascinating."  
Coby stared at them, then turned to his laptop. "You know, you guys are really cute. I wish I had something like that."  
"Never liked anyone?" Grimm inquired.  
"Incorrect. I had a crush on Taylor in 8th grade, and last year I liked a boy in my grade named Kaine. But neither of them felt the same, I know that much."

"In my old shrine, we were not allowed attachments of any sort. It is nice to be here and and not worry about such things." Kyn smiled up at him. "Perhaps now that you are no longer under the shadow cast by your parents, you can allow someone else in?" He suggested, looking positive. "As for the past, if you ever want to know anything, you may ask what you will."

"Perhaps," Coby nodded. He fiddled with his laptop for a moment, running some data on it before closing it again. "Wonder what we're doing for the rest of the day. Rin is certain ready to do something." he chuckled.

"I do hope she is in her right mind again." Kyn looked a little worried. "And that she does not end up making such decisions that she did at the, ah, club." He blinked, silent for a moment. "It is noon, though. Is there anywhere I could perhaps prepare a meal for us?"

Grimm nodded. "We could do a restaurant. We've got enough money for that. And I'm sure my dad has some."  
"I grabbed a good thousand dollars from my house," Coby stated. Grimm raised his eyebrows.  
"Alright, we definitely got enough."

_**[Timeskip**__**]**_

"Do another one!" Lacy laughed, playing with Dummy in their earth tent as Grimm played his guitar and Kyn leaned against the wall next to him, watching. Rin was messing around with her fire bending and earth bending- little things. Xavier was sitting on the curb, watching cars pass by and smoking a cigarette.  
Grimm stopped playing when he heard footsteps approaching them, looking up to see Coby with a hand against the wall to steady himself. He was pale and sweating. "You guys, I don't feel so... So good..." he rasped out. He had barely lifted his head up before he was falling to the ground.

Kynareth jumped up to rush over to him with the others behind him. He quickly turned the boy onto his back, feeling for a pulse and breathing. They were they, but getting erratic. "I believe he is suffering from an ailment, as he has no injuries. Lady Rin?" He looked up for guidance.

Rin dropped to her knees beside him, hands hovering over his body. "Oh, jeez..." she cringed, not wanting to lift his shirt. She knew she had to, though. "Alright, here we go," she opened up his sweatshirt, took it off to reveal his arms that were covered in slash marks, and then lifted his shirt. He still had the scar from the burn mark, and the rest of his torso and even some of his chest were covered in cuts and bruises, too. Rin looked about ready to throw up, feeling sick because of the fact that he'd had to go through this. She put his shirt back down. "'Kay, pants now," she said a bit regretfully. She yanked down his pants, leaving his boxers. Once again they were greeted with the sight of slash marks and healed stab wounds and bruises.  
"Holy shit..." Grimm held a hand to his mouth, eyes wide.

Kyn flinched back, gripping his collar with tears stinging in his eyes. "Mara preserve us." He whispered, shaking his head and tearing his eyes away from the sight. "This... was not from any battles was it?" He frowned, already believing he knew the answer. "The Gods are cruel for turning away from such an act." He frowned, ruefully cursing Stendarr. "Is there anything we can do?"

"All his father. His mom... Well, his mom is different. She's just as abusive, but in a... A different way." Rin winced. "I have no idea, to be honest... I don't know what's wrong with him. What did you say it was?" She asked Kyn as she fixed Coby's pants.

"An ailment. A... poison of some sort." Kyn peeked back over, swallowing thickly. "I did not study treatments for it such things, I believe I will not be of use."

Rin put her ear to Coby's chest, hearing the rapidly increasing heartbeat. She furrowed her brow and lifted her head a little, then looked closely at Coby's chest. Starting from his mid-stomach and branching upward were very thin, very inconspicuous trails of purple. "Crap, I know what's wrong with him." She hung her head. "Someone slipped something from the Tree of Poisons into something he ate. That little restaurant we went to earlier? The waiter seemed iffy. I knew something was wrong. But what the hell. I bet he just gets a kick of out poisoning people!"

"This a common poison, then?" Kyn looked a little relieved at the thought. "Then the cure should easy to locate. All we must do if retrieve it for him and call the Police on this waiter, yes?" He looked up hopefully.

"We can't call the police on him, we don't have any direct proof that he did this. That, and this is way too delicate for humans to understand." She shook her head. "  
"But," Lacy stepped out with Dummy on her head. They both had looks of pure fear and concern on their faces. "But you know where the cure is."  
"I dp. It's also the Tree of Poisons. Half of the tree is poisons, half is cures for them. But it's a five or so day trip and by then... Coby'd be dead." She looked up to see Lacy was tears brimming in her eyes and Dummy cowering a little.

"We can't call the police on him, we don't have any direct proof that he did this. That, and this is way too delicate for humans to understand." She shook her head. "  
"But," Lacy stepped out with Dummy on her head. They both had looks of pure fear and concern on their faces. "But you know where the cure is."  
"I do. It's also the Tree of Poisons. Half of the tree is poisons, half is cures for them. But it's a five or so day trip and by then... Coby'd be dead." She looked up to see Lacy was tears brimming in her eyes and Dummy cowering a little.

Kyn was shaking his head again, gently reaching out to brush his fingers across an old wound. "I will not accept that we let him die." He said softly, looking down. "I..." The glow caught his attention. The necklace, of course! "I think I can so something to give you enough time."

Grimm cocked his head. "...What?" he narrowed his eyes a little.  
"You can actually keep him alive long enough for me to get back?" Rin asked hopefully.

"... I believe so." He slipped off the cross from his neck, holding it in his palm. "Zu, Kynareth do Taazokaan, frul zahrahmiik feykro suleyk ol aan Vahlok ahrk gron rii fah fahdon Coby fin sul krasaar ahrk dinok ahst vaal*." A few tears slipped from his cheeks onto the necklace as the white turned a light, wavering blue. As soon as it did, Kyn flinched physically, feeling as if a door had suddenly slammed shut in his face. Replacing the sun's warmth on treetops and grass was suddenly cold, and he expected that when he opened his eyes, it would be in dead winter. It wasn't, though, it was still the same as before which was odd because he swore he felt a chill over his body. Once the glow began to steady, he leaned over to slip it on Coby's neck with shaking hands. "He should feel a little better now."

Grimm's eyes widened, as did Rin's, and immediately Grimm was at Kyn's side. "Are- Are you okay?" His eyebrows were furrowed in concern. Coby would be better, now, but Kyn looked... bad.

"Yes, of course." He answered habitually. "Just, ah.. a little cold." He smiled in a hopefully reassuring way. "What matters is that you have enough time to make your journey." He said to Rin.

Rin nodded at him. "Thank you so much," she stood and went to the room, then came back out with a wad of cash. "I'm gonna take some of Coby's money. Just two hundred or so. I wonder where he got all this money, anyway..." she trailed off and shook her head. "You guys need to move Coby to the tent, if you don't mind. Lacy, you're staying with them to help out with whatever they want." Lacy nodded. "And you," she looked at Grimm. "Take care of your boyfriend. He's not lookin' too spiffy already." Grimm cringed a bit.

"You will be alright on your own?" Kyn stood up, hand on the wall. "The Tree of Poisons... sounds like quite a dreadful place. You possess much power on your own but I still worry for your safety."

"I'll be fine, I promise. It's you guys I'm worried about." She said, offering a bit of a smile. "Just... take care of each other, alright? Try to keep him warm. If there's anything you can do." She told Grimm, then looked at Kyn. "/Is/ there any way for you to get warm again?"

"I, er... probably not." He gave a nervous laugh. "It is just a temporary side affect." He said quickly with a dismissive wave. "It will go away. We shall take care of Coby here, good luck on your travels." He gave a smile.

"Alright, thanks. Don't die." She waved and stuffed the money in her pocket, slung a small backpack over her shoulder, and then took off into the sky, using flames from her fists as jets.

Kyn gave a little sigh, helping move Coby into the large tent where he could rest. "We really cannot see if it was the waiter? Perhaps the Brotherhood still lives. That is troubling." He lapsed into a few mumbles to himself, sometimes unconsciously twining his finger around the silver bracelet.

Grimm shook his head. "I'm not sure. Rin said not to, so I'm gonna respect her request and not do it until she at least gets back." He felt really bad about Coby and Kyn, and he just wanted to make all of it go away, honestly. He was a little more worried about Kynareth, only because, well, obvious reasons. But he knew that the worry was showing on his face and he couldn't help it. All of this made him sick to his stomach. Damn it, Kyn's made him go soft, and he can't do anything about it!

"Mmm." He acknowledged, standing up to slip back to through the window. Might as well try to open the box again. He picked the small wooden box and picked at the lock with a particularly petite metal feather. For a 700 year old lock, it was pretty sturdy, but he'd long ago lost the key so it was either this or smashing it on the ground, which he didn't really care for as he wasn't too keen on ruining what was inside.

Grimm told Lacy to stay with Coby and Dummy, joining Kyn in the room below. "What's the box?" he asked curiously, going into the closet and reappearing with a pair of sweats and a large sweatshirt on.

"Some old keepsakes." He fidgeted with it again. "But I cannot seem to open it. I never learned how to pick a lock." He laughed a little sheepishly, twirling his 'lockpick' in his hands.

"Aha!" The older man grinned. "And /that/ is where I specialize. Any lock that I can reach, I can get open. Give it here," he gestured for Kyn to give him the box.

Then brunette did so, sitting on the bed with his legs crossed. "You have studied such an art?" He asked, curious. Perhaps some of the old thrown-together books were elaborated on. Then again, the Thieves guild has always been very secretive.

"Kyn, I've been locked up more times than I can count. And each time the door always had a key I could get to," he shook his head. He pulled a bobby pin from the mattress of the bed and stuck it in the keyhole, wiggling it around.

Kyn gave him a concerned look. "That is worrying, but at least you are here." He watched as Grimm fiddled with the lock and actually looked like he knew what he was doing. He turned and set the little feather on the table and huddled up back to the other man, shivering slightly.

Grimm fiddled with the bobby pin some more, the process taking a few more moments before the lock suddenly popped. He handed the box to Kyn and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "There ya go."

He made a noise of delight, opening the lid. Inside were some old arrow heads, some oddly coloured stones, a gauntlet, a feather, and a few other odds and ends. Kyn quickly snatched up the fluffy brown feather, holding it to his chest. "Monrah." He smiled, running a finger over it.

Grimm looked at the contents of the box curiously, and when Kyn picked up the feather and said that strange word, it for some reason clicked in his head. He knew that word. "That's your... Mother's?" He said uncertainly. Maybe he was remembering wrong. Why did he know /that/ word?

Kynareth gave him an odd look, eyes suddenly lighting up. "Yes." He held it up some. "Her wings were brown, like a hawk. But more..." He flapped his own. "Fluffy." His eyes wandered over the darker markings a moment. "How did you know?"

"I, uh..." he trailed off, eyebrows furrowing. "I think I used to call my mom that." He shook his head. "I'm not sure. I could swear I remember... Yeah, yeah. She taught me to call her that. She said that's what she'd called her mother, and it went down the family line like that."

"It derives from the language of dragons from far beyond anyone's memory. That it was passed through your family means they once had contact with such a dragon. They could have studied at a chapel or Arcane university, most likely Winterhold." Kyn smiled a little. "It was probably through the Arcane, given your heritage."

"I still have no idea what any of that other stuff is," Grimm shook his head, chuckling. "But that's cool. My family goes that far back and they quite possibly had contact with dragons. Sweet."

"Magic." He did a little flair with his fingers. "I am incapable of such things. My kind was always particularly sensitive to it, though. We were dying out fairly quickly at that time. We had... certain properties that were much sought after. I always guessed that is why our village was under siege." He frowned a little. "I suppose I shall never know."

Grimm nodded. "So what's all that other stuff?" He pointed.

"These were from my father's work, he crafted metal," he pointed to two of the shiner looking arrow heads, "and that was one I found in the snow during the attack," he pointed a more crude, rusted one, "and this one came from Oblivion." he pointed to the last one, a black metal head with odd red vines swirled in. "They always have fascinated me. In these red vein-like parts carried a special purple poison that was released into your blood when it hit you. And these were just the field arrows. They are very heavy though." He pointed to the rocks. "They were by this odd underground pool I discovered outside my village once. The very water glowed bright blue and odd root plants grew there. Unfortunately, after I found it, I grew very ill and could not return again before we were driven out of the town." He picked up the gauntlet next. "This is my father's from the war at Pale Pass." It was silver with inlaid blue jewels. "I guess he gave it to me in hopes I would become a warrior like him, but I am not suited for it. Especially not when I was young." he chuckled.

"Sounds like you had a lot of little adventures when you were a kid," he smiled. "My family and I grew up as Wanderers. We never spent more than a week in one place. I don't have any keepsakes except for the book and a necklace. I don't wear it, though. I'm afraid it'll get damaged or someone will steal it right off my neck, to be honest." He chuckled embarrassingly. "My mom gave it to me before... Before she died." He looked down, a distant look in his eyes.

"I did not, sadly. I was very ill as a child and had many things that were wrong with me. By my mother's law, I could not leave the house in fear that any sickness I caught would be fatal. Most of my more interesting memories came after the shrine." Kyn tucked a little closer to him. "What was she like, your mother? And life as a Wanderer? It must have been quite an experience, seeing all those places."

"Hmm, she was great." He smiled fondly, remembering her. "She was beautiful. Black hair, bright green blue eyes, great smile... She was probably one of the nicest people you could ever meet. She taught me how to battle and fight. My father was great, too, up until he left. He was always there for us. When he left my mother was heartbroken, but she stayed happy for me. I felt bad because I knew that I wasn't enough. She needed her husband." He shook his head. "But yeah, she was a great lady. She really would have liked you."

"She does sound quite wonderful." Kyn agreed, smiling. "I too can relate in losing a father figure, in a different way. But, um, what age were you when this happened?" He asked.

"When my father left? I was 7 or 8, I think." He told him. "I cried like a baby." He laughed a little.

"As was I!" Kyn made an amused noise of disbelief. "It was all very chronological, actually. Age 7 was my sister, 8 was my dad, and 9 was my mother. Unfortunately, I have nothing from my sister. She was very young at the time, just a year younger than myself."

"I had an older brother," Grimm nodded, "I don't usually talk about him. He was kind of a jackass. Don't get me wrong, he could be a great brother when he wanted to be, but most of the time I didn't like him. He only got worse after mom died. Then sometime after that he committed suicide," he explained, grimacing a little.

"Kai was out playing in the forest. I wanted to go with her, just to make sure she was safe, but my mother forbid it. We were told by a hunting party she had slipped and fell into the river and drowned. I do not think I could have done anything to save her as I was, but I would have at least wished to keep her off the riverside." He made a move to give a comforting gesture, Grimm would probably not appreciate his chilled skin against him. "What was his name, your brother?"

"I seriously would have loved all these places, I think. It'd be so much better than the time we live in today. That, and back then was farther from the end of the world." He chuckled. "The humans on this planet are going to kill it."

"They are?" Kyn pulled back in alarm. "But why? Do they seek to end their kind as well as all others?" The look in his eyes was nothing short of horrified. "I do not understand."

"You see this city?" Grimm said, eyebrows furrowed. "It screws with the air and they put pollutants in the water and species are going extinct. It's awful. People are cutting down forests just to put buildings in."

"Then something must be done!" Kyn jumped to his feet. "They cannot just- ngh." He paused, holding his hands to his head, vision swimming. "Just destroy everything like they own it." He said softly. "They do not."

Grimm put his hands on Kyn's shoulders, gently easing him to sit down again. "We can't stop an entire race, Kyn. There are a lot of people fighting against the type of people I just described. There are still good ones. Some of them are... hurting the earth without meaning to. Sometimes people can't help it."'

"We would have never have thought to do such acts, even the lowest of murderers." The brunette gave a disheartened sigh, sitting down again. "I do not see why they cannot stop their destruction."

"A lot of humans don't care. They only think of themselves. And a lot of the things they use that hurt the earth are necessary to their survival because they don't know how to live any other way." He looked down. "I honestly don't know how to live any other way. If I were to lose technology, I wouldn't know what to do. I may be a Wanderer and love nature, but I rely on technology even when it hurts the earth. I'm ashamed to admit that." He cringed.

"Perhaps it is because I have not been around such things and cannot see much use for them." He offered Grimm a smile. "I must learn that the time is different now and people's needs are different too, there is not much I can do for that." He went back to messing with the hem of his clothes. "I apologize."

"Nah, it's okay." Grimm leaned his head on Kyn's. "You don't have anything to apologize for."

"That is not quite true, but thank you." He sighed, wanting to scoot closer and cuddle, but he felt his skin was too cold to be comfortable for that. He just let Grimm rest against him but kept their skin from touching. No need for him to get anymore worried.

Grimm rolled his eyes, smiling.  
"Slender?" Xavier poked his head through the window. "What happened to Rin?"  
"Did you seriously miss that whole thing?" Grimm sighed. He went off explaining it to his father.  
"The tree of poisons?" Xavier's eyes widened. "Did anyone tell her that the Black Blood resides there?"

"The black what?" Kyn looked up in confusion. "This is a group of some sort?"

Grimm slapped a hand to his forehead. "Shit, she has no idea about that! It's... It's not a group. It's a single person. She's a very- sinister woman. If you hurt her and she bleeds, her blood - her black blood - has a mind of its own and can take the form of almost anything. They're very difficult to get past, let alone defeat."

"So we must go after her!" The younger man insisted. "Even if she does not come across this woman, it is better to be safe. She could not have gone that far, yes? Does anyone else know the way?"

Xavier raised a hand. "I know the way. I can find her. You two stay here. Her and I will be able to defeat her, I promise." He grinned, blond hair flopping in his face. "Your mother taught me some spells over the years when you were small. I know enough."

"Are you sure it is alright for just you two?" Kyn hobbled to his feet. "We can go as well, it is safer the more strength in abilities we have."

"We'll be fine," Xavier assured him. "Don't worry. And don't you dare leave this city. Slender, if either you leave, you're-"  
"I'm what? Grounded? Dad, I'm twenty-seven." Grimm rolled his eyes.  
"Right, right..." Xavier shook his head. "Anyway. Just stay here, okay?"

"Grounded?" Kynareth looked from the floor to Grimm. "Oh... kay." he shook his head. "I suppose I shall relent. Please be safe, Sir." He gave a little bow and flopped back onto the bed a little harder than he meant to, wincing.

Xavier gave a little salute and then went and informed Lacy and Dummy of his departure, then took off- using some speed running spell he'd learned.  
"You alright?" Grimm asked Kynareth as he joined him on the bed.

"Fine." He inched away a little and plastered a smile on his face. "I worry for Lady Rin and Sir Xavier, however. This 'Black Blood' sounds like a very unpleasant woman."

"She is. I've heard stories about her. I can only hope that she's not as bad as the stories make her out to be." He looked at Kyn. "You said you were cold. Is your-," he reached out, resting a hand on Kynareth's arm. "Wow," his eyebrows raised. "You really are cold."

"It is not that important." Kyn tried, pulling out of his grasp. "Please, do not worry about it. Perhaps Lacy would enjoy some company? Or there is some modern thing we can do? Like, uhm... well, there has to be something." He rattled off, trying to distract the older man.

"I'm sure Lacy could use some company." Grimm nodded. "She's only got Dummy up there. And she's sitting with an unconscious Coby. That can't be fun."

"Then let us do that." He stood and clamored out of the window before making his way to the alley. After greeting Lacy, he took up a crosslegged position next to her and folded his wings around his torso. "He as been sleeping soundly, yes?"

Lacy nodded slowly and Dummy crawled away from Coby's head onto Kyn's lap, curling up on his knee as a cat. "He's fine, I think. I don't know what to do. I feel like I should help him."

"We are doing what we can, for now." Kyn smiled reassuringly. "We can only hope Lady Rin and Sir Xavier return in time." He absently stroked Dummy's back, fixing his gaze on the floor.

"Rin will be fine." Lacy said firmly. "She's made it through worse. Trust me. And with Xavier with her, it should be even easier for her."

"It is not if they will return, only when." He chuckled, pulling at a strand of his hair. "I worry for them, but I am confident in their abilities."

"I think we all worry for them," Grimm sighed, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes.

**_[Timeskip_****_]_**

The morning didn't come with it's usual sunny flair, but Kynareth was getting used to that lately. He hadn't had much energy to do much of anything, really, feeling as if weights had been tied around his body. Still, he opened is dull grey eyes and looked up where he was huddled against Grimm's chest. With one paste-white and slightly blue tinged hand, he tugged on the man's shirt to see if he was awake.

Grimm let out a little groan, sighing. He cracked his eyes open, seeing that Kyn was awake. "Hmm, well, good morning sunshine." He smiled sleepily. "The world says hello."

"Oh." Was all he said, settling back into the blankets. They didn't offer any warmth, but it was really just for the comfort. He blinked, looking back up. "Good morning."

Grimm frowned, letting out another sigh. "Hey, you okay?" he made himself eye level with Kynareth in the blankets and pushed some of the hair out of his eyes. "You're okay, aren't you?"

"Of course I am." Kyn mustered a smile. His eyes wanted to droop shut again, his mind tricking his body to tell him it was winter. He was too afraid to sleep anymore. It like being led down a dark tunnel in every dream and waiting for the drop off that got closer each night. His mind told him to, though, unknowingly condemning itself. "Why would I not?"

"For obvious reasons," Grimm raised an eyebrow. He smiled a little. "Well, you saved me from having a nasty dream, at least. So thanks. I probably would have scared the shit out of you had I woken up first."

"Tell me?" He offered tentatively.

Grimm hesitated. "I don't know... It's... It's pretty bad. Has to do with my mom." He cringed.

"You have told me much about her appearance." Kyn murmured, coughing harshly. "But nothing else. If it helps to speak about her, then I will be glad to listen."

Grimm stared at the other man for a moment, his hands twitching a little. "Yeah. Never told anyone what happened to her." He looked down. "Around the time that I was... 14, I think? I still had my mom. She was teaching me how to fight, and thought I could use another /actual/ battle. With a real bad guy, or whatever. She told me that I couldn't use my book." He took in a shaky breath. "We came across some asshole looking to fight, and I was doing pretty good until he started going after my mom."

"Was this before what happened to your arm?" He kept his fingers bunched in the man's shirt, trying to offer comfort.

"Ah, yeah." He nodded. "That happened only a week or two after this." He continued. "Anyway, I was fighting him and kicking his ass, but he started going after my mom. He kept hurting her and he was going too fast to allow her to even do anything. It... It pissed me off..." Grimm suddenly looked lost. "I lost control, and I killed the guy. But in the process of killing him... Nazari hit my mom. He snapped her neck and spine when he hit her and she was killed instantly." His breathing was shaky now, and he was /sure/ he could hear something like whimpering in his head.

"It was an accident." Kyn assured him, hoping Grimm didn't mind his ice cold skin against his as he wrapped the man up into a hug, pressing blue lips to his forehead. "Nazari, he a bit brash. In such a situation, he was in panic." He held the man close to him, whispering apologies.

Grimm forced himself not to let the tears fall. "I know. I don't really blame him anymore... Since you showed up they've been... Better. I'm kind of starting to like them." He smiled a little, burying his face in Kynareth's cold chest. God, he hoped he would last the next few days...

Kyn weakly tugged his fingers through Grimm's hair. "I am glad to have helped in some way." He turned his head to the side, hearing the echo of his sluggish heart. Already, his eyelids were feeling a little heavier, but he fought it. Coby was still alive past when the poison should've killed him, so it had worked, at least. He was relived at that, only hoping that if he did not end up surviving long enough, the ward would hold.

"Hi," Lacy said softly as she entered the room. "Dummy's still up with Coby." She stood at the end of their bed and looked at them with sleepy eyes. "I haven't been able to sleep all night."

"Ah, good morning Lady Lacy." Kyn turned to her, smiling tiredly. "Is everything alright?" The smile turned concerned. "You two are well?"

She fidgeted with the ends of her large white t-shirt. "I'm just tired and I missed you guys... Dummy wanted to stay up there." She looked down, then up. "Can I get in with you?"  
"Sure, but... Kyn's pretty cold..." Grimm said, not wanting to offend Kyn, but it was the truth.  
"I'm hot anyway," Lacy said quietly. She climbed on the bed, scootching in between the two and putting her head on Kyn's chest. "That feels better." She sighed. Grimm put his arms around Kyn and Lacy.

Kyn gave a little hum, nodding off. He could feel the heat of the two radiating off of them, and was comforting to him. "I never did tell tell you of what happened? Not completely, anyway, have I?" He asked, trying to keep his eyes open.

"Hm? No, I don't think so." Grimm shook his head. "Tell me."

"Oh." Kyn rubbed at his eyes, blinking. "When I was 8, my father was executed for stealing to support us. We were not very well off, no one in our town was. It had been a bad year for crops and many animals were sick and dying all over Tamriel." He gave a yawn. "It was not much better the next year, even worse for us since his death. It was just my mother working in the fields by Skingrad, southwest of our town. In the winter, I was terribly sick, just like now. I woke up one day to the whole place burning to the ground and the sound of horses and shouting. I ran out to find my mother, and when I did, she simply gave me a feather of hers and told me to run, that she would meet up with me at her workplace. Only I saw them drag her away and burn the wings from her back." His words were getting more rushed and slurred. "I did run though- trying to to find the place she told me to go anyway. I got lost and ended up near the boarder to Elsweyr a few days later. I had stumbled upon the shrine then, and Lady Kyne took me in. She told me I was going to die, though, and asked if I was willing to dedicate my life to the Gods in exchange for being able to live. I did, not quite knowing what she meant and woke the next day to find myself well." He paused with a sigh.

Grimm blinked a few times. Lacy was listening closely, although she was kind of dozing off. "That's... Awful. I mean, I'm glad you're alive, of course, but about your mom and dad... That's horrible." He cringed. "Watching that... I can't even imagine."

"It was not uncommon to be orphaned at a young age, as you were." He said softly, "Only I did not have to raise myself. Since then, my mood and appearance, even, vary depending on the season."

"What's it like in the fall and winter?" Lacy murmured curiously. Grimm wanted to know, too.

"It the fall, my hair becomes red and eyes are usually a yellow/orange." He sucked in a breath, remembering. "It is like being on the down-wards of an adrenaline rush that comes from Summer. Everything is preparing, so usually I am very... ah, lazy." He chuckled. "In the winter, the red darkens to become almost black, and the orange lightens to a very light blue. Like it is turning the Summer, but not as light. It this this time where I tend to sleep for days and am very tired when conscious."

"Aw," Lacy pouted a little. "I don't want you to be tired all the time. You won't be around as much... I bet Grimm doesn't want you to be tired, either..." she was speaking quietly and tiredly.

"I cannot help it." Kyn gave a laugh, smoothing down her hair. "Nature sleeps during this time, which means I must too." He looked up at Grimm. "I apologize for future inconvenience- if I get there."

"If you get there? Kyn, you're going to get there." Grimm said firmly. "/When/ you get there, I guess I'll just... Have to wait." He tried to sound nonchalant about it, but he couldn't help the disappointment that seeped into his voice.

"If I detach myself a bit more, perhaps will be like in the fall?" He smiled, leaning his head over a bit more to peck Grimm on the cheek. "I will try not to be of hindrance."

Grimm nodded. "It's okay."  
Lacy turned so her head was a pressing against Grimm's chest as well as Kyn's arm, her mouth half open and eyes closed. "Everyone will be okay, right? Kyn and Coby and Rin and your daddy..."

"My hope is that it is so." The brunette nodded. "Nothing can ever be true until it happens." He closed his eyes, humming a soft, sad melody.

Lacy's breathing evened out slowly, her mouth hanging open slightly as she was lulled to sleep by Kyn's humming. Grimm slid his fingers through her hair, smiling. "She's a good kid." he leaned his head down and kissed the top of her head.

"She is." Kynareth agreed, and began singing softly. "I would stop the rain for you, and steal the sun. Finding you was... there is no death in love. Heart of fire... I will wait for you." He had one arm looped loosely over her stomach and the other was still twined in Grimm's shirt. "Je vous attends. Je vous attends. I will wait for you. Ice cold in the dark, my heart is stone. Empty and still... C'est mon coeur glacé. This frozen heart. Crush my fears. Melting for you." He sighed. "Je vous attends. Je vous attends. I will wait for you." With the song over, he smiled. "It was my mother's lullaby."

Grimm smiled softly to himself. "It's beautiful." He looked down and chuckled when he saw Lacy quirk a smile in her sleep, two breathy words escaping her mouth, "Pretty voice..." Grimm bit his lip to keep from laughing.

"I learned from her, but it is not as good as yours." A very brief, faint flush ran across his cheeks and vanished. "I never had the... capacity in my lungs to sing. Never something louder than a simple lullaby." He smiled.

"Well, you've still got a pretty voice, as Lacy said." He chuckled. "You think maybe we should just stay in bed all day?"

"Nnn." Kyn just mumbled, shifting closer to him.

The older man wrapped his arm a little tighter around the two, feeling as if he might lose them if he didn't. "I'll take that as a yes." He whispered.

Lacy had taken to staying in the basement with the two since a few days ago, as it provided more of a sense of ease. Well, as much as it could, seeing as Kyn hadn't really done so much as twitched since she first came down here. She would snuggle between his cold body and Grimm's much more warm one when she found she couldn't sleep or when Grimm was having more trouble than usual of hiding the worry on his face. Rin and Xavier were due back today, so she decided to head up and play look out.

It was a little while later that Xavier came speeding up, skidding to a stop, blonde hair flopping in his face. Rin followed after, landing on the ground and her fire-fists extinguishing. They were a little battered up, the two of them, but other than some bruises and cuts, they were fine. Rin beamed when she saw Lacy, holding her arms open for the girl to rush into. "Lacy!" She squealed. "God, I'm sorry that took so long..."

"Rin!" Lacy beamed, dashing into the outstretched arms. "It's fine, are you hurt?" She did a quick up-down, confirming that no injuries were very serious looking, and turned to tug her hand into the alley. "C'mon, Coby's waiting."

Rin let Lacy lead her into the alley way, seeing Coby laying in the tent. She rushed forward, dug around in her backpack, and pulled out a small water bottle with a thick purple liquid in it. "I didn't have anything else to put it in," she chuckled. Opening Coby's mouth and propping his head up on her lap, she poured a small amount of it into his mouth, watching as he reflexively swallowed it down. They waited, and within moments, Coby's breathing was stronger and color was returning to his skin, eyes twitching beneath the lids.


End file.
